Researchers from McGill University (Canada) have found that surrogate mothers have a high risk of postpartum sepsis and bleeding, as well as high blood pressure during pregnancy. The results of the respective study were published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.

The researchers looked at data from 863,017 singleton births in the Canadian province of Ontario that took place from 2012 to 2021. Of these births, the team report 806 were to gestational carriers—surrogate mothers who carry babies for intended parents. It was found that the probability of severe maternal diseases among these women was 7.8 percent. But among those who fertilized the child independently or with the help of in vitro fertilization (IVF), such a risk was three times and two times lower, respectively.

The researchers noted that surrogate mothers were most likely to experience severe postpartum hemorrhage, preeclampsia (a dangerously high blood pressure), and sepsis (a blood infection).

 It was also found that the risk of severe infections of the embryo, fetus, and newborn due to premature birth was slightly higher in children born to surrogate mothers.