Perceived social support and antenatal blood pressure in pregnant women at risk for hypertensive disorders.

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) are a leading cause of maternal and morbidity and mortality. Social support has been linked to improved cardiovascular health but its relationship to maternal blood pressure (BP) remains unexplored. We sought to assess the relationship between social support and ambulatory BP among pregnant individuals at risk for HDP. Participants were 150 pregnant people < 20 weeks' gestation and at-risk for HDP who completed the Prenatal Social Support Instrument - Revised and underwent 24-h ambulatory BP monitoring. Linear regression analyses examined associations between social support and BP. Higher satisfaction with overall social support was associated with lower 24-h DBP (B = -0.33, p = 0.001), daytime SBP (B = -0.24, p = 0.02), daytime DBP (B = -0.40, p < 0.001), and nighttime DBP (B = -0.26, p = 0.02). Greater social support may be related to lower antenatal BP in pregnant individuals at risk for HDP. Psychosocial interventions to promote cardiovascular health in pregnancy may be warranted.