Pregnancy and stroke.

This review details the evidence that the risk of stroke is increased in the peripartum and postpartum period rather than the entire 9 months of pregnancy. In women with prior stroke, available evidence suggests that the excess risk of a stroke recurrence in pregnancy is approximately 1% to 2%. Although certain conditions have a particularly strong association with stroke in pregnancy, such as eclampsia, or with the postpartum period, such as cerebral venous thrombosis, the clinical and therapeutic approach to women with stroke during pregnancy should be similar to the approach to stroke in young adults. Strategies for stroke prevention should take into account the competing risks to mother and fetus.