Pregnancy in Obese Women and Mechanisms of Increased Cardiovascular Risk in Offspring

Overview

Journal Eur Heart J

Publisher Oxford University Press

Specialty Cardiology & Vascular Diseases

Date 2024 Nov 7

PMID 39508438

Authors

Anna L K Cochrane

Michael P Murphy

Susan E Ozanne

Dino A Giussani

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Pregnancy complicated by maternal obesity contributes to an increased cardiovascular risk in offspring, which is increasingly concerning as the rates of obesity and cardiovascular disease are higher than ever before and still growing. There has been much research in humans and preclinical animal models to understand the impact of maternal obesity on offspring health. This review summarizes what is known about the offspring cardiovascular phenotype, describing a mechanistic role for oxidative stress, metabolic inflexibility, and mitochondrial dysfunction in mediating these impairments. It also discusses the impact of secondary postnatal insults, which may reveal latent cardiovascular deficits that originated in utero. Finally, current interventional efforts and gaps of knowledge to limit the developmental origins of cardiovascular dysfunction in offspring of obese pregnancy are highlighted.

Citing Articles

Gestational overweight decreased risk of antepartum hemorrhage in pregnant women with complete placenta previa: a retrospective study.

Yang J, Ye S, Xuan B, Liu Z, Fan D PeerJ. 2025; 13:e19091.

PMID: 40028221 PMC: 11869886. DOI: 10.7717/peerj.19091.

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