Complications of pregnancy are health problems that are related to, or arise during pregnancy. Complications that occur primarily during childbirth are termed obstetric labor complications, and problems that occur primarily after childbirth are termed puerperal disorders. While some complications improve or are fully resolved after pregnancy, some may lead to lasting effects, morbidity, or in the most severe cases, maternal or fetal mortality.
Common complications of pregnancy include anemia, gestational diabetes, infections, gestational hypertension and pre-eclampsia. Presence of these types of complications can have implications on monitoring lab work, imaging, and medical management during pregnancy.
Severe complications of pregnancy, childbirth, and the puerperium are present in 1.6% of mothers in the US, and in 1.5% of mothers in Canada. In the immediate postpartum period (puerperium), 87% to 94% of women report at least one health problem. Long-term health problems (persisting after six months postpartum) are reported by 31% of women.
In 2016, complications of pregnancy, childbirth, and the puerperium resulted globally in 230,600 deaths, down from 377,000 deaths in 1990. The most common causes of maternal mortality are maternal bleeding, postpartum infections including sepsis, hypertensive diseases of pregnancy, obstructed labor, and unsafe abortion.
Complications of pregnancy can sometimes arise from abnormally severe presentations of symptoms and discomforts of pregnancy, which usually do not significantly interfere with activities of daily living or pose any significant threat to the health of the birthing person or fetus. For example, morning sickness is a fairly common mild symptom of pregnancy that generally resolves in the second trimester, but hyperemesis gravidarum is a severe form of this symptom that sometimes requires medical intervention to prevent electrolyte imbalances from severe vomiting.
Maternal problems
The following problems originate in the mother, however, they may have serious consequences for the fetus as well.
Gestational diabetes
Gestational diabetes is when a woman, without a previous diagnosis of diabetes, develops high blood sugar levels during pregnancy. There are many non-modifiable and modifiable risk factors that lead to the devopment of this complication. Non-modifiable risk factors include a family history of diabetes, advanced maternal age, and ethnicity. Modifiable risk factors include maternal obesity. There is an elevated demand for insulin during pregnancy which leads to increased insulin production from pancreatic beta cells. The elevated demand is a result of increased maternal calorie intake and weight gain, and increased production of prolactin and growth hormone. Gestational diabetes increases risk for further maternal and fetal complications such as development of pre-eclampsia, need for cesarean delivery, preterm delivery, polyhydramnios, macrosomia, shoulder dystocia, fetal hypoglycemia, hyperbilirubinemia, and admission into the neonatal intensive care unit. The increased risk is correlated with the how well the gestational diabetes is controlled during pregnancy with poor control associated with worsened outcomes. A multidisciplinary approach is used to treat gestational diabetes and involves monitoring of blood-glucose levels, nutritional and dietary modifications, lifestyle changes such as increasing physical activity, maternal weight management, and medication such as insulin.