Venous dysfunction of late pregnancy persists after delivery.

Pregnancy is associated with DVT, pelvic thrombophlebitis, and lower extremity varicosities. Pelvic venous compression by the gravid uterus is blamed. A prospective controlled study using plethysmography was performed. Venous capacitance and outflow were measured at term, and at 1 week, 6 weeks and 3 months following delivery. Results show decreased venous capacitance and venous outflow at term pregnancy, no improvement 1 week after delivery, modest improvement at 6 weeks, and dramatic statistically significant improvement in both parameters by 3 months. The persistence of venous dysfunction for several weeks after delivery indicates that changes in venous function at term pregnancy are largely the result of factors other than pelvic venous compression by the gravid uterus.