The Importance of Cardiovascular Risk Assessment and Pregnancy Heart Team in the Management of Cardiovascular Disease in Pregnancy.

Pregnancy-related maternal morbidity and mortality is increasing because of complications from cardiovascular disease. Pregnancy results in physiologic changes that can adversely impact the cardiovascular system and lead to adverse pregnancy outcomes. A multidisciplinary pregnancy heart team is essential to safely navigate women with heart disease through pregnancy. This role of the pregnancy heart team is to offer preconception counseling, determine pregnancy risks and educate women about those risks, develop a comprehensive antenatal and delivery plan, and ensure appropriate postpartum follow-up. These steps are important to improve cardiovascular outcomes in pregnancy.