The studies, published Thursday in the peer-reviewed medical journal Obstetrics and Gynecology, looked at the prevalence of birth complications caused by chronic hypertension, or high blood pressure, in pregnant women and the rates of complications from iron-deficiency anemia, excluding patients with anemia caused by genetic factors.
The researchers also note implicit bias in the medical community that shows that Black patients receive better health outcomes when treated by a Black health care professional, arguing that doctors monitoring these diseases and listening to their patients is one solution to persistent inequities. Additionally, rather than treating hypertension equally in patients, doctors routinely ignored Black women's experiences, justifying non-treatment because of higher rates of hypertension in the Black population in general. Like with anemia, doctors wrongly considered higher rates of hypertension intrinsic to the Black population rather than socially and environmentally driven.
The studies' findings are significant for several reasons. They highlight the fact that these are treatable and preventable medical conditions. The research showed that 5.1 percent of pregnant Black women had chronic hypertension during pregnancy, while the general population had it at a rate of 2.1 percent. White pregnant women had it at a rate of 2 percent.