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OB
CMECNE

ACOG Guidance: Emergency Treatment for Severe Hypertension in Pregnancy

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Learning Objectives and CME/Disclosure Information

This activity is intended for healthcare providers delivering care to women and their families.

After completing this activity, the participant should be better able to:

1. Restate the BP values that ACOG defines as severe hypertension
2. Identify the first line therapies used to treat severe hypertension

Estimated time to complete activity: 0.25 hours

Faculty:

Susan J. Gross, MD, FRCSC, FACOG, FACMG
President and CEO, The ObG Project

Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest

Postgraduate Institute for Medicine (PIM) requires faculty, planners, and others in control of educational content to disclose all their financial relationships with ineligible companies. All identified conflicts of interest (COI) are thoroughly vetted and mitigated according to PIM policy. PIM is committed to providing its learners with high quality accredited continuing education activities and related materials that promote improvements or quality in healthcare and not a specific proprietary business interest of an ineligible company.

The PIM planners and others have nothing to disclose. The OBG Project planners and others have nothing to disclose.

Faculty: Susan J. Gross, MD, receives consulting fees from Cradle Genomics, and has financial interest in The ObG Project, Inc.

Planners and Managers: The PIM planners and managers, Trace Hutchison, PharmD, Samantha Mattiucci, PharmD, CHCP, Judi Smelker-Mitchek, MBA, MSN, RN, and Jan Schultz, MSN, RN, CHCP have nothing to disclose.

Method of Participation and Request for Credit

Fees for participating and receiving CME credit for this activity are as posted on The ObG Project website. During the period from Dec 31 2017 through Jan 25 2023, participants must read the learning objectives and faculty disclosures and study the educational activity.

If you wish to receive acknowledgment for completing this activity, please complete the post-test and evaluation. Upon registering and successfully completing the post-test with a score of 100% and the activity evaluation, your certificate will be made available immediately.

For Pharmacists: Upon successfully completing the post-test with a score of 100% and the activity evaluation form, transcript information will be sent to the NABP CPE Monitor Service within 4 weeks.

Joint Accreditation Statement

In support of improving patient care, this activity has been planned and implemented by the Postgraduate Institute for Medicine and The ObG Project. Postgraduate Institute for Medicine is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

Physician Continuing Medical Education

Postgraduate Institute for Medicine designates this enduring material for a maximum of 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Continuing Nursing Education

The maximum number of hours awarded for this Continuing Nursing Education activity is 0.2 contact hours.

Designated for 0.1 contact hours of pharmacotherapy credit for Advance Practice Registered Nurses.

Read Disclaimer & Fine Print

Summary:

Severe hypertension can be a life-threatening event during pregnancy and requires special vigilance in the postpartum period, particularly following hospital discharge. The goal of treatment is to control hypertension and prevent seizures.  Uncontrolled hypertension can lead to heart failure, myocardial ischemia, renal injury and stroke.

When to Treat:

Urgently treat acute onset severe hypertension in pregnancy or postpartum period

  • SBP ≥160 and and/or DBP ≥110 mm Hg persisting for 15 minutes
    • systolic BP a predictor of maternal morbidity/mortality

First Line Therapy:

Nifedipine

Hydralazine

Labetalol


Immediate Release Oral Nifedipine

Onset

  • 5 to 10 minutes

Administration

  • 10 to 20 mg orally
  • Repeat in 20 minutes if needed
  • Then 10 to 20 mg every 2 to 6 hours
  • Maximum dose: 180 mg

Medication Risks

  • Maternal tachycardia and headaches

IV Hydralazine

Onset

  • 10 to 20 minutes

Administration

  • IV
    • 5  to 10 mg IV (or IM)
    • Then 5 to 10 mg IV every 20 to 40 minutes
  • Infusion
    • 0.5 to 10 mg/hr
  • Maximum dose: 20 mg

Medication Risks 

  • Maternal hypotension and headaches
  • Abnormal FH tracings

IV Labetalol

Onset

  • 1 to 2 minutes

Administration 

  • IV
    • 10 to 20 mg IV
    • Then 20 to 80 mg every 10 to 30 minutes
  • Infusion
    • 1 to 2 mg/min
  • Maximum dose: 300 mg

Medication Risks 

  • Avoid in the following clinical settings
    • Asthma
    • Preexisting myocardial disease | Decompensated cardiac function | Heart block | Bradycardia

Note: ACOG states that “any of these agents can be used to treat acute severe hypertension in pregnancy” | An approach detailed in ACOG guidance uses “an initial regimen of labetalol at 200 mg orally every 12 hours and increase the dose up to 800 mg orally every 8–12 hours as needed (maximum total 2,400 mg/d). If the maximum dose is inadequate to achieve the desired blood pressure goal, or the dosage is limited by adverse effect, then short-acting oral nifedipine can be added gradually”


Seizure Prophylaxis: Magnesium Sulfate

  • Remains drug of choice for seizure prophylaxis
  • Magnesium sulfate should not be used to reduce blood pressure
  • See more on magnesium sulfate in ‘Related ObG Topics’

When to Use

  • Severe features of preeclampsia
    • Administer to all women
  • No severe features of preeclampsia and systolic BP > 140 and < 160 mm Hg or diastolic BP > 90 and < 110 mm Hg
    • There is no consensus on this matter as prophylaxis will reduce eclampsia but 1 in 100 to 129 women need to be treated and side effects (although not life threatening) will increase
    • ACOG states that the decision to use magnesium sulfate when severe features are not present should be the decision of the “physician or institution, considering patient values or preferences, and the unique risk-benefit trade-off of each strategy”

Delivery and Postpartum

  • Vaginal delivery
    • Continue infusion 24 hours postpartum
  • Cesarean
    • Begin infusion (if not yet running) before surgery and continue 24 hours postpartum
    • Discontinuing prior to operative vaginal birth or cesarean section to avoid uterine atony or anesthetic drug interactions is not recommended

Administration

  • Loading dose of 4 to 6 g administered per infusion pump over 20 to 30 minutes (i.e., slowly) followed by a maintenance dose of 1 to 2 g per hour as a continuous intravenous infusion
  • IM option if IV access limited
    • 10 g initially as a loading dose (5 g IM in each buttock) followed by 5 g every 4 hours
    • Mix with 1 mL xylocaine 2% to alleviate pain

Learn More – Primary Sources:

ACOG Practice Bulletin 222: Gestational Hypertension and Preeclampsia

ACOG II Severe Hypertension in Pregnancy Bundle

FIGO: A literature review and best practice advice for second and third trimester risk stratification, monitoring, and management of pre-eclampsia

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Related ObG Topics:

Diagnosing Preeclampsia – Key Definitions and ACOG Guidelines
Aspirin Treatment for Women at Risk for Preeclampsia – ACOG, SMFM and USPSTF Recommendations
Does Enoxaparin Prevent Preeclampsia?
ASPRE Trial: A Combined Risk Algorithm and Use of Aspirin to Prevent Preterm Preeclampsia
Eclampsia and Role of Magnesium Sulfate

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Computer System Requirements

OBG Project CME requires a modern web browser (Internet Explorer 10+, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge). Certain educational activities may require additional software to view multimedia, presentation, or printable versions of their content. These activities will be marked as such and will provide links to the required software. That software may be: Adobe Flash, Apple QuickTime, Adobe Acrobat, Microsoft PowerPoint, Windows Media Player, or Real Networks Real One Player.

Disclosure of Unlabeled Use

This educational activity may contain discussion of published and/or investigational uses of agents that are not indicated by the FDA. The planners of this activity do not recommend the use of any agent outside of the labeled indications.

The opinions expressed in the educational activity are those of the faculty and do not necessarily represent the views of the planners. Please refer to the official prescribing information for each product for discussion of approved indications, contraindications, and warnings.

Disclaimer

Participants have an implied responsibility to use the newly acquired information to enhance patient outcomes and their own professional development. The information
presented in this activity is not meant to serve as a guideline for patient management. Any procedures, medications, or other courses of diagnosis or treatment discussed or suggested in this activity should not be used by clinicians without evaluation of their patient’s conditions and possible contraindications and/or dangers in use, review of any applicable manufacturer’s product information, and comparison with recommendations of other authorities.

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