University Of Missouri Kicks Off Nationwide Study Of Pregnant Women With Heart Disease

The University of Missouri Health Care system has kicked off a nationwide study of pregnant women with heart disease to better understand how their care influences the outcomes of mother and baby.

M-U is teaming up with the University of Missouri-Kansas City Healthcare Institute and Saint Luke’s Mid-America Heart Institute for the HOPE study.

Funding for the study, $8.3 million, being provided by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, will track 1,000 pregnant women with heart disease over a four-year period.

The rate of maternal mortality is on the rise with Missouri ranking as one of the worst states in the country in the category.

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University of Missouri Health Care has kicked off a nationwide study of pregnant women with heart disease to better understand how their care influences the outcomes of mother and baby.

The rate of maternal mortality is on the rise across the U.S., and Missouri ranks as one of the worst states in the country in this category.

Deaths from cardiovascular disease are among the most preventable, so MU Health Care is teaming up with the University of Missouri-Kansas City Healthcare Institute for Innovations in Quality and Saint Luke’s Mid America Heart Insititute to launch the Heart Outcomes in Pregnancy Expectations (HOPE) study. The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute is providing $8.3 million dollars to fund the project, which will track 1,000 pregnant women with heart disease.

MU Health Care maternal-fetal medicine specialist Dr. Karen Florio is the co-principal investigator for the project, and MU Health Care will be the first of 36 institutions nationwide to enroll participants in the study.

“Our goal is to develop standardized care protocols to ensure pregnant women get the care they need to combat maternal mortality and morbidity,” Florio said. “We are so excited to be the first health system in the country to begin enrolling pregnant women in this study, and we hope this is a step forward in the fight against Missouri’s maternal mortality crisis.”

The study began enrolling patients at MU Health Care in mid-December and will continue for four years. Each patient participant will receive an initial screening during pregnancy, then periodic follow-ups that continue through one year after delivery.

Pregnant women with heart problems who are interested in participating or physicians who wish to refer patients to the study should call (573) 882-4107.

Contact: Eric Maze, mazee@health.missouri.edu, 573-884-3656

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About University of Missouri Health Care

University of Missouri Health Care is an academic health system with a mission to save and improve lives. Caring for patients from each of Missouri’s 114 counties, MU Health Care specialists treat the simplest and most complex medical conditions, conduct research that leads to breakthroughs and train the next generation of doctors to do the same. Committed to collaboration, research and innovation, MU Health Care has more than 8,000 physicians, nurses and health care professionals in over 80 specialties working together to give patients seamless care with the most advanced treatments and safest procedures. Serving more than 350,000 patients each year, MU Health Care facilities include Capital Region Medical Center, Children’s Hospital, Ellis Fischel Cancer Center, the Missouri Orthopaedic Institute, Missouri Psychiatric Center, University Hospital and Women’s Hospital, as well as multiple quick care, urgent care, primary care and specialty clinic locations. For more information, visit http://muhealth.org.

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