Associations of anxiety disorders, depressive disorders and body weight with hypertension during pregnancy

The purpose of this study was to prospectively examine the relationships between maternal DSM-IV-TR anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, and body mass index (BMI) with arterial hypertension and blood pressure during pregnancy. In the Maternal Anxiety in Relation to Infant Development (MARI) study, N = 306 women were enrolled in early pregnancy and repeatedly assessed during peripartum period. DSM-IV-TR anxiety and depressive disorders prior to pregnancy, lifetime anxiety/depression liability, and BMI during early pregnancy were assessed with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview for Women (CIDI-V). Based on their prepregnancy status, all participants were assigned to one of the following initial diagnostic groups: no anxiety nor depressive disorder (no AD), pure depressive disorder (pure D), pure anxiety disorder (pure A), and comorbid anxiety and depressive disorder (comorbid AD). Blood pressure measurements were derived from medical records. Arterial hypertension during pregnancy was defined by at least two blood pressure values a parts per thousand yen140 mmHg systolic and/or a parts per thousand yen90 mmHg diastolic. N = 283 women with at least four documented blood pressure measurements during pregnancy were included in the analyses. In this sample, N = 47 women (16.6 %) were identified with arterial hypertension during pregnancy. Women with comorbid AD (reference group: no AD) had a significantly higher blood pressure after adjustment for age, parity, smoking, occupation, household income, and education (systolic: linear regression coefficient [beta] = 3.0, 95 % confidence interval [CI] = 0.2-5.7; diastolic, beta = 2.3, 95 % CI = 0.1-4.4). Anxiety liability was associated with an increased risk of hypertension (odds ratio [OR] = 1.1, 95 % CI = 1.0-1.3) and a higher systolic blood pressure (beta = 0.4, 95 % CI = 0.0-0.7). The adjusted interaction model revealed a significant interaction between the diagnostic group pure A and BMI for hypertension (ORIT = 1.5, 95 % CI = 1.1-2.1). Especially, women with a lifetime history of comorbid anxiety and depression and obese pregnant women with a lifetime history of pure anxiety disorder should be informed about their heightened risk of hypertension, monitored with regular blood pressure measurements, and provided with strategies for prevention and early intervention such as changes in diet and physical activity.