By term, diastolic blood pressure returns to what level?

By term, diastolic blood pressure returns to what level?

• A. Higher than pre-pregnancy baseline
• B. Lower than pre-pregnancy baseline
• C. Pre-pregnancy baseline
• D. Unchanged from first trimester baseline

Answer: (C)

In pregnancy, diastolic blood pressure tends to dip early on because of hormonal vasodilation and expanded plasma volume, but by term the cardiovascular system shifts back toward the nonpregnant state and the pressure returns to the pre-pregnancy baseline. This normalization supports the high cardiac output needed in late gestation without chronically lowering pressure. If the diastolic pressure didn’t return to baseline, or stayed consistently higher, that would suggest a hypertensive disorder rather than normal physiology.

In pregnancy, diastolic blood pressure tends to dip early on because of hormonal vasodilation and expanded plasma volume, but by term the cardiovascular system shifts back toward the nonpregnant state and the pressure returns to the pre-pregnancy baseline. This normalization supports the high cardiac output needed in late gestation without chronically lowering pressure. If the diastolic pressure didn’t return to baseline, or stayed consistently higher, that would suggest a hypertensive disorder rather than normal physiology.