Does a multidisciplinary team involving internists specialized in hypertension and obstetric medicine improve pregnancy outcomes?

The prevalence of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) steadily increased in past years partly because of advanced maternal age and partly because of ever-wider access to assisted reproduction techniques in women with pre-existing complex medical conditions. Preeclampsia (PE), the most severe type of hypertensive disorder of pregnancy (HDP), is the leading cause of aternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. PE is a pregnancy-associated syndrome involving multiple organs with long-term health implications for both mothers and their offspring. PE increases the risk for future cardiovascular and renal diseases and, in turn, women already affected by these diseases before conception are at increased risk of developing PE. For these reasons PE is not considered anymore a solely pregnancy disease, representing a topic of sub-specialization for internists, particularly those specialized in hypertension.