High blood pressure

A pregnancy is an additional burden for the heart because blood volume increases by about 40%. As a result, the heart becomes slightly bigger and beats faster. At the beginning of pregnancy (around 20 weeks), blood pressure decreases slightly due to a change in hormones. At the end of pregnancy, this increases again, to the normal value of before pregnancy.

A diastolic pressure lower or equal to 90 mmHg is considered normal. When blood pressure rises, we are talking about increasing or high blood pressure. This can be accompanied by some complaints. Complaints that may be caused by high blood pressure and / or may indicate preeclampsia and (worse still) the HELLP syndrome are:

  • headache;
  • see black spots, stars, blur or flashes;
  • Retain water abruptly, and especially in the hands and the face (note that water retention can also be a very normal phenomenon in pregnancy, especially in the feet, ankles and hands);
  • tingling feeling around the stomach and the head (the so-called ligament feeling);
  • nausea and vomiting;
  • general discomfort
  • tingling in the fingers;
  • pain in the upper back or between the shoulder blades.

If you suffer from (one or more) above complaints, please contact our practice immediately! However, these complaints do not always indicate high blood pressure, preeclampsia or HELLP syndrome.