Preeclampsia is a complicated, dangerous pregnancy-related
version of high blood pressure or hypertension. Formerly
called toxemia, it can cause problems to both the
mother and baby. The cause is not totally understood
but it tends to be genetic and there seems to be a
link to the way the placenta grows though this is
not conclusive; strangely the symptom goes away once
the placenta is delivered.
Who is at risk?
• First time mothers-to-be after week 24
• If you have a family history of preeclampsia
• If you had high blood pressure even before
becoming pregnant
• If you have diabetes, lupus or long term
kidney disease
• If you are a teen or above 35
• If you are expecting twins or more
• If you are very overweight
Symptoms
of Preeclampsia During Pregancy..
Although many women will have slightly raised blood
pressure and some protein in the urine, only a small
percentage are affected enough to warrant treatment.
With the mild form, you can't even tell you have
this condition, since it can be only be picked up
with regular urine and blood pressure checks during
your antenatal checkups. If you have any of the
below mentioned symptoms, reach your doctor ASAP.
Severe preeclampsia can cause
• Rise in blood pressure
• Sudden weight gain due to fluid retention
• Severe headaches
• Vision problems such as blurry visions or
flashing before the eyes
• Protein in your pee
• Vomiting
• Sudden swelling of face, hands or feet
• Difficulty in passing urine, or passing
urine in small amounts
• Upper or mild abdominal pain
• Irritability
• Nausea, dizzy spells
Preeclampsia Effects..
• It usually affects pregnant women in the later
part of their pregnancies, though it can be as early
as week 24! It can interfere with the blood supply
to the placenta thereby reducing the nutrient and
oxygen level to the baby.
• It can cause labor to be induced or a C-section
to further curb the raised BP levels
• Left untreated high BP can damage mother's
kidneys, nervous system and blood vessels
• Babies of mothers with this condition tend
to be smaller
• There is an increased risk of stillbirth
• Without warning preeclampsia can turn into
the very serious eclampsia, although this is very
rare these days.
• Eclampsia happens out of the blue and is very
dangerous as it is life-threatening to both the mother
and the unborn child.
• The blood vessels in the uterus go into spasms,
cutting the blood supply to baby
• Eclampsia starts with convulsions and ends
with a coma; kidney failure, liver and lung problems,
bleeding from the placenta, blood clotting problems
are the other complications.
Checks
• It can be detected early and therefore managed
under care but it is not preventable
• Your urine and blood pressure are checked
at your routine visits
• Inform your doctor about any swellings, headaches,
vision problems or gastric pains (fluid retention
doesn't necessarily mean preeclampsia)
Treatment
of Preeclampsia
• The sure-fire treatment is to deliver the
baby.
• For mild preeclampsia, bed rest at home or
the hospital under careful supervision of both mother
and baby
• Tests may include blood and urine checks,
monitoring fetal heart rate, ultrasound scans to check
baby's weight and measure blood flow to the placenta
• You will be drinking lots of fluids
• Your sodium intake will be controlled
• You may be put on medication to bring your
BP down
• For severe forms, you will need to be hospitalized
and observed. You will be treated with medications
to control your BP and your labor might be induced
or you may have cesarean depending on how well you
respond to the medications, the state of your uterus
and how advanced your pregnancy is.
Final word…
Many women may blame themselves for this condition:
they feel it is lack of exercise or too much of exercise,
wrong diet, stress and strain etc. The fact is there
is no known cause for this condition; research is
still underway and hopefully there will be some light
shed on this soon.
