title: Pregnancy and heart disease: time for a randomized controlled trial.
abstract: Cardiac disease is the most important cause of maternal mortality and despite considerable efforts by cardiologists and obstetricians alike, the numbers of deaths continue to rise. The literature on the subject is limited and almost entirely made up of case series. In this editorial we consider the need for randomized controlled trials in key areas, some will be harder than others to complete, but all are required to help reverse the growing numbers of women who die from heart disease during pregnancy.
authors.affiliation: Academic Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Chelsea and Westminster NHS Foundation Trust, 369 Fulham Road, London SW10 9NH, UK. Electronic address: mark.johnson@imperial.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gatzoulis
authors.forename: Jolien
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Roos-Hesselink
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D011249:Pregnancy Complications, Cardiovascular / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic / Q000639:trends
keywords: Anticoagulation; Beta blockers; Cardiomyopathy; Heart disease; Pregnancy; Prosthetic valve