Infertility: Research has shown that women who have had miscarriages, stillbirths, or fertility problems in the past are more likely to develop chronic diseases later in life.
Stroke is the leading cause of disability and death among women around the globe. According to reports, stroke claimed the lives of almost 3 million women in 2019. Some women who survived strokes suffered disability, losing their normal lives and unable to work. The weekly peer-reviewed medical trade journal BMJ has published a new study that suggests women may be more at risk for non-fatal strokes or fatal strokes if they have infertility.
STROKE RISK AND REPRODUCTIVE ISSUES
Hypertension, diabetes, hypertension, and obesity are some of the causes of strokes. These factors were not found to be relevant in the above-mentioned research. An earlier study could not prove a link between stroke-related complications in women who had miscarriage, stillbirth or experienced major lifestyle changes. Researchers of the new study believe that women who have reproductive problems can be monitored to reduce their risk. Experts agree that more research is necessary to determine why these women are so vulnerable.
CONCLUSION OF THE STUDY
Researchers analyzed data from around 27 studies that were based in eight countries on chronic diseases and reproductive health. These factors could have been:
Obesity: Weight is a significant factor in women’s health.
Lifestyle: Smoking and excessive alcohol consumption can increase stroke risk in women.
UNDERLYING CONDITIONS THAT RISE THE RISK OF
Infertility Factor
Women’s health can also be affected by factors like stillbirth, infertility, and miscarriage. Non-fatal strokes are more likely to occur in women who have had infertility issues in the past than those with no fertility issues.
Miscarriage Factor
Also, women with a history of miscarriage were found to have an 11 percent higher chance than those who have never had one. Studies also show that miscarriage rates are higher for women who have had more miscarriages.
Stillbirth Factor
Non-fatal strokes are 30% more likely to occur in women who had stillborn children. Women who have had multiple stillbirths are eighty percent more likely to suffer a nonfatal ischaemic attack. Recurrent stillbirths were also at a higher risk than 40% according to the study.
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, (PCOS), and Premature Ovarian Insufficiency, (POI)
PCOS and POI, which are common in women, can also be risk factors for women’s health. These conditions could also be responsible for the association between infertility risk and stroke risk, according to researchers.
The more stillbirths or miscarriages a woman has had, the greater her stroke risk
Stillbirths caused by non-fatal haemorrhagic stroke (bleeding) or blockage stroke (non-fatal)
New research has shown that women who have miscarried or had stillbirths have a higher risk of stroke. This is when blood cannot reach the brain due to a blocked or burst arterial. This risk is increased with every miscarriage and stillbirth.
This link can be difficult to establish because it requires following large numbers of women over a long time period and using reliable data about women’s experiences. The British Medical Journal published our study today. It is the first to show a link between stroke and pregnancy loss.
Many women don’t realize that their pregnancy experiences can indicate potential health problems later on. Their doctors should be aware of their increased risk, according to our findings.
Other health problems, such as infertility or miscarriage, could also increase stroke risk. These include endocrine conditions (low oestrogen, insulin resistance), inflammation and problems with an endothelial cell that aid in blood flow.
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Stroke risk is worse than heartbreak
Our research is built on the pooled data of 618,851 women from eight different studies in Australia and the United States.
They were between 32-73 years old when they first enrolled in the study. They were then followed up for an average 11 years.
Study results showed that 9,265 (2.8%) women suffered at least one stroke, while 4,003 (0.7%) had a fatal stroke. Overall, 91 569 (6.2%) women had a history of miscarriage, while 24,873 (4.6%) had a history of stillbirth.
Women who reported having miscarried had an 11 percent higher chance of a non-fatal stroke and a 17 percent higher chance of dying from it than women who hadn’t.
Women who had more than three miscarriages were at greater risk of non-fatal stroke. This was compared to women who never had miscarriage.
The risk of stroke is also increased by stillbirth.
Women who have ever had to give birth were 31% more likely to suffer from non-fatal strokes than women who had never been pregnant. This is compared with a rate of 42 per 100,000 years and 69.5 per 100,000 respectively. There was also a 7 percent higher chance of fatal strokes.
The risk of having later strokes increases with increasing stillbirths. Women who have had more than one stillbirth are at 26 percent higher risk. This is a rise from 11 per 100,000 years to 51.1 per 100,000.
This is the first study to link stroke subtypes. Stillbirths were found to be linked to either fatal hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding) or non-fatal stroke (blockage). Miscarriages were also linked to both subtypes.
This study confirms the findings of a previous systematic overview, which found similar results but only limited evidence linking stroke subtypes.
These links could be caused by problems in endothelial cell function (which regulate vascular relaxation and contraction, as well as releasing blood-clotting enzymes), or pregnancy loss due to problems with the placenta. These problems also relate to how blood vessels dilate and get inflamed or blocked during stroke.A stroke is characterized by sudden changes in the appearance, speech, and arm sensations of a person.
Adjusting for known risks
The following factors were considered to be risk factors for stroke in our findings: body mass, smoking status, high blood pressure or diabetes, and whether women had high blood sugar or low blood pressure. Ethnicity and education level were also taken into account.
We can identify the higher risk associated with stillbirths or miscarriages by adjusting for risk factors.
What can women and doctors do with this information,
Doctors perform a cardiac health check to assess the risk of coronary disease. This is a look at heart disease, stroke, and heart failure. Doctors can predict future diseases by taking into account these risks.
According to the Australian Guidelines, heart health checks should be performed on a regular basis for those aged 45-74 and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons starting at age 30. This is when cardiovascular disease risk increases.
Guidelines recommend medication (blood pressure medication or lipid-lowering medication like statins) if there is a high risk of developing cardiovascular disease in the next five years.
The Australian Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance is currently updating these guidelines. It includes the Cancer Council Australia (Diabetes Australia), Kidney Health Australia and Stroke Foundation. However, more recent international guidelines recommend that medication be taken at lower risk levels.When assessing stroke risk, doctors should consider the history of women’s pregnancies.
No matter your risk of developing cardiovascular disease, it is important to live a healthy lifestyle. This includes quitting smoking, avoiding alcohol consumption, regular exercise, and eating healthy.
These lifestyle changes lower the risk for everyone, but doctors will be more willing to assist those who are at high risk.
Research shows that stillbirth and miscarriage are indicators that a woman is more at risk for developing cardiovascular disease. These events can occur years before other risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes, or high cholesterol.
Talk to your doctor if you have had a stillbirth or miscarriage. It is possible to make lifestyle changes and monitor your health if you know that you are at higher risk for stroke.
GPs should ask women about their reproductive history and look out for signs that could indicate stroke risk.
Women who had miscarriages and stillbirths are at higher risk of stroke.
New research has shown that women who have miscarriages or stillbirths have a higher risk of stroke. This is when blood cannot reach the brain due to a blocked or burst arterial. Each miscarriage and stillbirth increases the risk.
This link can be difficult to establish because it requires following large numbers of women over a long time period and using reliable data about women’s experiences. The British Medical Journal published our study today. It is the first to show a link between stroke and pregnancy loss.
Many women don’t realize that their pregnancy experiences can indicate potential health problems later on. Their doctors should be aware of their increased risk, according to our findings.
Other health problems, such as infertility or miscarriage, could also increase stroke risk. These include endocrine conditions (low oestrogen, insulin resistance), inflammation and problems with endothelial cell that aid in blood flow.
Stroke risk is worse than heartbreak
Our research is built on the pooled data of 618,851 women from eight different studies in Australia and the United States.
They were between 32-73 years old when they first enrolled in the study. They were then followed up for an average 11 years.
Study results showed that 9,265 women (2.8%) had had at least one stroke, while 4,003 women (0.7%) had had a fatal stroke. Overall, 91 569 (16.2%), women had a history miscarriage, while 24873 (4.6%) had a stillbirth history.
Women who reported having miscarriaged were 11% more likely to have a non-fatal stroke than women who hadn’t.
Women who had more than three miscarriages were at greater risk of non-fatal stroke. This was compared to women who never had miscarriages.
The risk of stroke is also increased by stillbirth.
Women who were pregnant at any time had a 31% greater chance of having a non-fatal stroke. This was compared to a rate of 42 per 100,000 years and 69.5 per 100,000 respectively. There was also a 7% increased risk of fatal strokes.
The risk of later strokes increases with increasing stillbirths. Women who have had more than one stillbirth are at 26% greater risk. This is a rise from 11 per 100,000 years to 51.1 per 100,000.
This is the first study to link stroke subtypes. Stillbirths were found to be linked to either fatal haemorrhagic stroke (bleeding) or non-fatal stroke (blockage). Miscarriages were also linked to both subtypes.
This study confirms the findings of a previous systematic overview, which found similar results but only limited evidence linking stroke subtypes.
These links could be caused by problems in endothelial cell function (which regulate vascular relaxation and contraction, as well as releasing blood-clotting enzymes), or pregnancy loss due to problems with the placenta. These problems also relate to how blood vessels dilate and get inflamed or blocked during stroke.
Adjustment for known risk factors
The following factors were considered to be risk factors for stroke in our findings: body mass, smoking status, high blood pressure or diabetes, and whether women had high blood sugar or low blood pressure. Ethnicity and education level were also taken into account.
We can identify the higher risk associated with stillbirths or miscarriages by adjusting for risk factors.
What can women and doctors do with this information,
Doctors perform a cardiac health check to assess the risk of coronary disease. This is a look at heart disease, stroke, and heart failure. Doctors can predict future diseases by taking into account these risks.
According to the Australian Guidelines, heart health checks should be performed on a regular basis for those aged 45-74 and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons starting at age 30. This is when cardiovascular disease risk increases.
Guidelines recommend medication (blood pressure medication or lipid-lowering medication like statins) if there is a greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease in the next five year.
The Australian Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance is currently updating these guidelines. It includes the Cancer Council Australia (Australia), Diabetes Australia (Australia), Kidney Health Australia (Australia) and the Stroke Foundation. However, more recent international guidelines recommend that medication be taken at lower risk levels.
No matter your risk of developing cardiovascular disease, it is important to live a healthy lifestyle. This includes quitting smoking, avoiding alcohol consumption, regular exercise, and eating healthy.
These lifestyle changes lower the risk for everyone, but doctors will be more willing to assist those who are at high risk.
Research shows that stillbirth and miscarriage are indicators that a woman is more at risk for developing cardiovascular disease. These events can occur years before other risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes, or high cholesterol.
Talk to your doctor if you have had a stillbirth or miscarriage. It is possible to make lifestyle changes and monitor your health if you know that you are at higher risk for stroke.
As potential indicators of stroke risk, GPs should ask women about their reproductive history and consider stillbirths and recurrent miscarriages.