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When Becky Elsmore, from Didcot, Oxfordshire, became pregnant in 2020, she was hopeful she would “get through it”. However, halfway through her pregnancy, her doctor noticed that her blood pressure was dangerously high and needed monitoring. A few days after her birth, Becky was invited to participate in her clinical trial and she was added to a self-monitoring group. Despite her chaotic life with a newborn, she found time to measure her blood pressure every day. Becky, now 40, stopped taking her blood pressure medication a little over a year ago. Becky says:

A photo of Becky and her daughter holding cupcakes.Both are looking at the camera and smiling

“I’ve never had any health problems and never had any symptoms, so it was a shock when my doctor told me my blood pressure was skyrocketing. They put me on medication and I started monitoring closely, but shortly before my daughter Remi was born in March 2021, I developed pre-eclampsia and was hospitalized.

As part of the trial, I sent my measurements to the app and researchers were able to adjust my medication accordingly.. There was no need to call my general practitioner or make an appointment, and I was able to send a simple electronic message requesting changes that had already been added to my medical record by the researchers.

“It’s really scary.”

“Before giving birth to Remi, I didn’t know much about high blood pressure or pre-eclampsia. It’s really scary reading about the long-term effects, but I hope by taking part in this study I can reduce my risk.

“I was definitely motivated by Remi. If she chooses to have a baby someday, she might end up with the same kind of problems, but in the meantime, caring for a woman with pre-eclampsia. I hope we know more about how to do it, and I hope this research will help more women get the same care I had.”

“The moment when your life changes”

Dr Jamie Kitt from the University of Oxford conducted the trial in which Becky took part. He said:

“The birth of a baby is a life-changing moment, and heart health is often the last thing on the minds of new mothers, as the baby becomes their number one priority.

“Our previous research identified a critical six-week period after a hypertensive pregnancy to ‘reset’ the newborn’s blood pressure and reduce the risk of future heart disease. This study shows how this reset can be achieved. As we investigate how best to provide this care at scale, we hope that our findings serve as a reminder to health care providers to keep a close eye on new mothers who enter their care after they are discharged from the hospital. hoping. ”

Learn more about women’s heart health

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