Adverse pregnancy outcomes—such as preeclampsia, gestational hypertension, gestational diabetes, low-birth weight, and preterm birth—are associated with risk of further complications, chronic disease, and cardiovascular disease. They also disproportionately affect Black and Latina women. A new study by investigators from Mass General Brigham finds adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs) among Black and Latina women are also associated with substantially greater health-related social needs, spanning domains such as education, transportation, food security, financial strain, employment, and social support. The researchers conclude that integrating social needs assessment into postpartum care could help improve long-term maternal health and reduce disparities. Results are published in JAMA Network Open.
"Pregnancy can offer a critical window of engagement for patients and providers," said senior author Michael C. Honigberg, MD, MPP, a cardiologist and researcher with the Mass General Brigham Heart and Vascular Institute. "Pregnancy complications should be viewed as an opportunity not only for cardiovascular risk prevention but also for screening for and addressing social needs."
Honigberg and colleagues from Mass General Brigham's Heart and Vascular Institute and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology analyzed data from the BUSY-BP cohort study, which included Black and Latina women recruited from hospitals and health centers affiliated with Mass General Brigham. Women completed a screening tool that asked about their living situation, food, transportation, utilities, safety, financial strain, employment, family and community support, education, and more. The study included 883 women who had previously been pregnant, including 400 participants (45.3%) who experienced one or more APO.
The researchers found that the rate of APOs increased with higher burden of health-related social needs, especially needs related to education. These included assistance with starting or completing job training or obtaining a high school diploma or General Educational Development equivalency certificate.
The authors note that further research is needed to disentangle cause and effect and to identify interventions guided by these findings that can improve health outcomes.
"Identifying and testing interventions, such as social support programs that can help women during the postpartum period, will be critical for improving downstream health outcomes for women and babies," said Honigberg.
Authorship: In addition to Honigberg, Mass General Brigham authors include Marya Rana, Katherine E. Economy, Kaitlyn E. James, Lauren Belak, Victoria R. Viscosi, Imuetiyan E. Eweka, Giulia M. Ensing, Amy A. Sarma, and Camille E. Powe.
Disclosures: Honigberg reported receiving grants from the AHA and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute during the conduct of the study; grants from Genentech and Novartis outside the submitted work; and personal fees from Novartis outside the submitted work. Additional disclosures can be found in the paper.
Funding: This study was supported by grants 979465 and 24RGRSG1275749 from the American Heart Association (AHA).
Paper cited: Rana M et al. "Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes and Health-Related Social Needs Among Parous Women" JAMA Network Open DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.28595
