Vascular and cardiovascular factors
Complications of reproductive process become more serious
if mediated by vascular and cardiovascular factors [19].
Deficient or abnormal development of placenta and of its
vascularization, both in the early stages of pregnancy and
in the perinatal period, may also play a substantial role in
the control of normal embryonic development [19,20]. In
this case, many congenital defects are also related, at least
in part, to the vascular damage of embryonic tissues [20]. A
possible cardiovascular disease in the pregnant women, is
often associated with a significant increase of the incidence
of body weight reduction in infants [19]. This is related to the
reduction of blood flow to the uterus and the consequent
reduction in the supply of oxygen and nutrients into the
embryo-fetal circulation (Figure 2) [19].