Question Title: postnatal hypertension with abnormal ekg

I developed hypertension 2 days postpartum. My physician had no explanation as to the cause. I am wondering if the c-section(my 4th) and tubal could have contributed to this condition. I was 37 yrs old at the time. The pregnancy was uneventful. The hypertension was extreme at first, and became more controllable as time passed and eventually "dissappeared". I am one of the few folks ever to be released from the hypertension clinic. A baseline ekg was performed. I was quite shocked to find out that I had something called a septal myocardial infarction (v1,v2)of uncertain age. What exactly is this, how significant is this as a risk factor, and could this be related to the wildly uncontrollable hypertension I developed postpartum?
The ekg also says something about minimal voltage for lvh. I would certainly appreciate someone explaining this to me. I don't know if all these factors are related, but I've been curious. Thank You. Candace

Dear Candace:

The minimal voltage for LVH refers to the presence of left ventricular hypertrophy - a thickening of the walls of the heart's main pumping chamber. This occurs in people with high blood pressure. The treatment is blood pressure control. An echocardiogram (cardiac ultrasound) can determine just how enlarged the heart is. In addition, an echocardiogram could determine if the septal infarction on your EKG represented a heart attack. If you have in fact had a heart attack, it would be reasonable to consider a cardiac catheterization to see if you have any coronary blockages. Extreme elevation of blood pressure can cause heart attacks, but this cannot just be assumed without looking for heart artery blockages first. The high blood pressure itself could have been related to certain complications of pregnancy [which it sounds like you did not have] or to medications given at the time of pregnancy. I doubt the surgery itself caused high blood pressure.

The septal myocardial infarction, or heart attack, if real, deserves further investigation. You should talk to your cardiologist about this.

Information provided in this forum is of a general nature. Specific diagnoses and treatments can only be made by your doctor. If you would like to see a cardiologist, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE for an appointment at desk F15.

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