Window Study: Placenta and Heart Health

STUDY BASICS

Did you deliver a baby at Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC in 2008 or 2009? If so, you may be able to participate in a research study to find out if pregnancy characteristics can provide clues about later heart health in women. This study involves a 1.5-hour visit followed by seven days of at-home blood pressure monitoring. Compensation provided.

STUDY PURPOSE

The placenta is a temporary organ that develops during pregnancy to join the mother and baby. The placenta provides the baby with oxygen and nutrients, and removes waste products. After birth, the placenta is often collected and examined because the condition of the placenta can provide important information about the health of the mother and baby. The purpose of this study is to find out if a woman’s placenta can provide clues about her heart health later in life. Researchers will collect information about current heart health and review stored medical information about past placental health from women who delivered at Magee-Women’s Hospital of UPMC in 2008 and 2009. Researchers hope that by using placental health as a window into heart health, they can develop better ways to predict and treat heart disease in women.

COULD THIS STUDY BE RIGHT FOR YOU?

• Age 18 and up
• Delivered a baby at Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC in 2008 or 2009
• Not currently pregnant, and not pregnant within past 6 months

WHAT PARTICIPANTS CAN EXPECT

Participation includes a 1.5 hour in-person visit that involves a blood draw, body composition measurements (height, weight and waist circumference), blood pressure reading, pregnancy test, questionnaires, and providing medical history. Participants will also have a glycocalyx screening test that assesses how your blood vessels work. This test involves placing a small camera under your tongue to record about 12 short movies of the smallest vessels in your tongue. Participants will also be sent home with a home blood pressure monitor, which the research team will teach you to use two times a day (morning and evening) for seven days. You will then return the machine by mail in a provided envelope.