They state that that much of the screening, risk-assessment and counselling can be effectively performed in primary care.
But once a cardiovascular disease is suspected, or confirmed, its management is best undertaken by interdisciplinary teams.
The document adds that high-risk patients are recommended for treatment in specialised centres.
This means that diagnostic procedures and interventions would be performed by specialists with expertise.
The guidelines are published at a time when maternal heart disease has become the major cause of maternal death during pregnancy.
Sue Jacob, RCM student services advisor, said: ‘We welcome the recommendation, but need to be cautious about over screening as this risks turning pregnancy into a medical intervention, as opposed to a socio-biological event.
‘Midwives are best-placed to screen but will need education, training and investment to undertake this role in addition to their existing responsibilities.’
The guidelines note that with so many recommendations based on retrospective data and broad expert consensus, registries and prospective studies are urgently needed.
The authors said: ‘We are convinced that this guideline document is an important contribution and will be considered very helpful for the management of cardiovascular disease during pregnancy in clinical practice.’
Their publication comes at a time when the risk of cardiovascular disease in pregnancy continues to rise in developed countries, the authors say.
They claim this is because the age at which people first become pregnant is increasing and with improvements in congenital heart disease treatment, more women with heart disease reach childbearing age.
The guidelines are published in the
European Heart Journal.
