Study links herpes to high blood pressure in pregnancy

A new study has linked viral infection, including herpes, with high blood pressure (hypertension) during pregnancy and pre-term birth.

The Australian researchers say the finding is a major step forward in understanding the cause of hypertension in pregnancy.

This condition occurs in up to ten per cent of first pregnancies throughout the developed world and is a common cause of maternal death in third world countries.

If untreated it can lead to eclampsia, threatening the health of both the mother and baby.

For today’s study researchers at Adelaide’s Women’s and Children’s hospital and the University of Adelaide, Australia, studied over 1,000 babies over a ten-year period.

They discovered the presence of viral nucleic acid in heel-prick blood samples from 1,326 newborn babies.

The researchers say their work shows that exposure to viral infection, especially viruses of the herpes group, may be associated with pre-eclampsia and also with premature birth.

“This is an exciting finding and further studies are now required to look at the link between viral exposure in pregnancy and genetic susceptibility to adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as high blood pressure, premature delivery and cerebral palsy,” said lead researcher professor Alastair MacLennan.

The study is published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.