Current views on the assessment of vascular wall elasticity in pregnant women with arterial hypertension

Abstract

Introduction. Arterial hypertension is the most common somatic pathology in pregnant women. Arterial hypertension is a factor of high risk for the development of severe preeclampsia, placental insufficiency, intrauterine growth restriction, premature birth, maternal and perinatal mortality, nervous disorder and vascular heart disease of newborns and women’s distant cardiovascular disorders. The pathogenesis of gestational complications is associated with pathology of placentation, endothelial dysfunction and a decrease in vascular elasticity. The pathogenesis has not studied yet. Nowadays there are no tests with enough sensitivity and specificity ensuring early diagnostics and risk identification at development of great obstetric syndromes. Aim of the study was to improve our understanding about a clinical and prognostic role of vascular wall elasticity in pregnant women with arterial hypertension. Materials and Methods. We searched publications and analyzed literature using various scientific databases, including Index Medicus, PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Library and Russian scholarly journals related to obstetrics, gynecology, cardiology for the last 9 years. Results and Discussion. Today changes in the elastic properties of arteries is a modern marker of a high risk of cardiovascular events in patients with essentialhypertension. Endothelial dysfunction develops already in the early stages of arterial hypertension and initiates structural changes in the vascular wall and an increase in arterial stiffness. High activity of the sympathetic nervous system is the cause of changes in the elastic properties of arteries in pregnant women with arterial hypertension. Conclusion. The role of vascular wall elasticity in pregnant women with arterial hypertension is of tremendous importance and deserves close attention. The study of elastic properties of vessels is relevant for assessing the risk of gestational complications in pregnant women with arterial hypertension.