Children born to mothers who experienced placental abruption during pregnancy face substantially increased risks of developing cardiovascular disease and dying from cardiovascular events by age 28, according to new research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association. The study found these individuals were approximately 4.6 times more likely to die from cardiovascular disease and nearly three times more likely to be hospitalized for heart-related complications compared to those whose births did not involve this complication.
Placental abruption occurs when the placenta separates from the uterus before delivery rather than after birth, potentially causing severe hemorrhaging and other complications. According to the American Heart Association's 2026 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics, this condition affects approximately 0.5% to 1% of pregnancies in the general population. The study analyzed nearly 3 million births in New Jersey from 1993 to 2020, with 1% (28,641 pregnancies) involving placental abruption.
"Our study suggests that placental abruption needs to be taken as a very serious complication for the mother and also potentially affecting the baby's cardiovascular health later in life," said study lead author Cande Ananth, Ph.D., M.P.H., of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. "Most treatments after a placental abruption focus on following the mother after a pregnancy complication. Our study shows it is important that their children are also monitored to identify potential complications due to their increased risk of cardiovascular disease."
The research revealed specific cardiovascular risks for offspring of mothers with placental abruption. Beyond the increased mortality risk, these children faced a 2.4 times higher risk of stroke hospitalization compared to those whose mothers did not experience this complication. The cardiovascular risks were particularly elevated among children younger than one year old. The study's findings remained consistent even when researchers conducted additional analysis comparing biological siblings, suggesting that genetic and environmental factors alone could not explain the relationship.
"Placental abruption is a sudden and often catastrophic event that cannot be prevented and comes with no warning," Ananth noted. "Older women or those expecting more than one baby, such as twins or triplets, have an increased risk of developing this condition. Health care professionals should support patients in maintaining a healthy lifestyle to protect their own health and their baby's." The researcher emphasized avoiding smoking, alcohol consumption, and illegal drug use, particularly cocaine, while maintaining good blood pressure control, as these factors are linked to placental abruption.
The American Heart Association recommends close monitoring of women who experience pregnancy complications, particularly in the first year after birth. "The findings of this study reinforce that it is also important to monitor their babies for risks and identify opportunities to reduce the potential impact these complications may have on them not only right after birth, but throughout their lifetime," said Stacey E. Rosen, M.D., FAHA, volunteer president of the American Heart Association. Rosen, who was not involved in the study, serves as executive director of the Katz Institute for Women's Health and senior vice president of women's health at Northwell Health in New York City.
Researchers indicate that more investigation is needed to understand how placental abruption affects heart health in offspring. This study represents one of the first to establish a link between this pregnancy complication and cardiovascular risk in children born from affected pregnancies. The findings are limited by the study's retrospective design using hospital and death records, which prevents establishing a cause-and-effect relationship. The study focused exclusively on single-baby births and followed offspring for up to 28 years after birth, reviewing hospital and mortality records during that period.
The research was conducted as part of the Placental Abruption and Cardiovascular Event Risk (PACER) project. Additional resources about maternal health and cardiovascular risk can be found through the American Heart Association's pregnancy and maternal health resources available at https://www.goredforwomen.org/en/about-heart-disease-in-women/symptoms/pregnancy-and-maternal-health-resources-and-tools. The study manuscript is available online through the Journal of the American Heart Association at https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.125.031234.
