Blood pressure question

[haggle-b]

Hi everyone.

I have posted this in third tri but got no response as yet so thought Id post it here as well if thats ok.

Ive just moved into third tri and am now 27+6.

I had to go to the hosp yesterday for a GTT test due to family history. Anyway they also did my 28 week bloods and routine checkups. My blood pressure came out as 140/80 which is what it has pretty much been all the time. The consultant seemed concerned that this was higher than it should be and wants me to see my midwife every week for it to be checked. There was also a trace of protein in my sample which has been sent off for further tests. So I came away worried and stressed out (Im a born worrier anyway!!) that somethings gonna go wrong.

The thing is my BP has always been rougly at this level as shown below:
8+2 - 124/80
15+6 - 140/80
19+5 - 140/70
25+5 - 140/80
27+5 - 140/80
I dont get why my midwife has never been worried or shown concern but the consultant is.
I spoke to my midwife to arrange to see her next week and she still didnt seem concerned.
So my question is (and sorry for waffling on!!) in your experience at what level has concern been shown and am I worrying unecessarily?

Thanks.

 

[hopedance]

my norm is about 115/80, when at 27+3 it shot up to 147/118 i was admitted to hospital (and 3+ of protein, doh). apparently you can have a stroke at that level.

with your bp, the 80 part is fine. the 140 is high but not terribly terribly high, and with the trace of protein they are probably worrying about you developing pre-eclampsia, but i think lots of women get a trace of protein sometimes and then it just turns out to be fine. have you been particularly stressed when they take your bp? that can make it a bit high. other than that, it sounds like your consultant is bang on, getting it investigated but not out right panicking because you might be fine anyway. in hospital they told me that they tend to worry about the change in blood pressure as well as what your bp actually is, i'm not sure why, but they were really interested in my obsessive notes from taking my bp twice a week since i conceived! also, my consultant said i didn't need to worry because worrying was her job not mine. i think that was the best advice i got during my pregnancy.

 

[lucy_x]

i have to see my MW every week also, at its highest my BP was at 175/100, no protein...
I think its quite common to show concern, its a serious thing in pregnancy...
they will want to monitor it every week to see if it rises, that way they can catch something before it becomes a problem.

x x

 

[Kaitybug]

I have had high blood pressure before and throughout my pregnancy. I'm on 600 mg of Labetalol (3 pills) to control it, and even on the medication it is still running high. My doctor tells me to call in if it reaches either over 150 on top or 100 on the bottom. Mine likes to stay around 145/90 ish, but she says this isn't a concern. I had to call over the weekend because it was running 152/102, but even then they just told me to lay down and watch it. Your consultant might just want to be sure that there are no other underlying issues, but since yours has remained about the same, it doesn't seem like it's out of control or anything like that. Better to just let them check you out to be sure, though. I go twice a week to get mine checked, so it's not unusual for them to really watch your bp. I hope it turns out for you!

 

[JASMAK]

They are keeping an eye on mine, because my bottom number has crept up to 85. Anything over 90 (for the bottom number) or 140 (for the top number) is considered high. I had preeclampsia with my son, but he came on his own early, so nothing was really done about it. When they told me they were thinking of taking him out early, my water broke at 38 weeks.

 

[MikaylasMummy]

i wouldnt be worried at all hun to me your bps all sound pretty good i was regularly up around 160/90-100 with a slight trace of protein in my urine but never had pre-eclampsia was just told it was hypertension..

 

[Windmills]

I had preeclampsia and my blood pressure stayed around 158/109.. At the highest it was 164/113, but that was only a couple of times on the night I was induced. It crept up slowly from about 35 weeks, they started to get concerned when it reached 130/85, as my normal blood pressure is 110/60. Once it got to 130/85, the community midwives started to come out every day to check it.

 

[Agiboma]

your bp sounds fine but you should still monitor it i was diagnosed with hypertension when my bp was 149/93, my normal bp was 106/62 range, now im on medication and my bp is now 132/80 currently, im taking libetolol 300mg daily

 

[Cazzyg]

Your BP is till within the normal range so try not to worry too much. Any BP reading where the top number is greater than 140 and the bottom over 90 is considered high. The bottom one is most important.

It's good that you are being monitored a little more carefully. You might find that if your BP stays the same for a few weeks, then the checks will become less frequent. Do look out for any changes such as swelling, headaches, epigastric pain(pain just below your ribs on the right hand side), visual disturbances and contact your midwife if you have any concerns.

It's probably worth bearing in mind that docs tend to see way more 'high risk' mums to be whereas Midwives see a much broader range and therefore, seem to have a broader tolerance for what's normal.

There wasn't any major concern over my BP until it reached 144/110, when I was admitted to hospital and it peaked at 170/123