Preeclampsia, << pree uh KLAMP see uh, >> is a serious condition that affects about 5 percent of pregnant women. Preeclampsia can interfere with growth of the fetus (unborn baby) and lead to premature birth. It may result in the death of the mother, her unborn baby, or both. Symptoms usually occur late in pregnancy. They include high blood pressure, excessive protein in the urine, and body swelling. Preeclampsia was formerly called toxemia of pregnancy.
The cause of preeclampsia is unknown. Certain conditions, including overweight and diabetes, increase a woman’s risk of developing preeclampsia. Good medical care during pregnancy detects most cases before they become severe. Preeclampsia can cause abnormal development or death of the fetus by restricting circulation of the mother’s blood to the placenta. The placenta is the organ that transfers food and oxygen from the mother’s blood to the fetus’s blood.
Untreated preeclampsia may progress to eclampsia, an even more serious condition in which women suffers convulsions. Such symptoms as headache, abdominal pain, and extremely high blood pressure may appear before convulsions, or convulsions may occur without warning. Other dangers of eclampsia include kidney failure, liver damage, and bleeding in the brain.
Doctors treat preeclampsia by prescribing bed rest and other measures that lower the patient’s blood pressure. Some cases must be treated in a hospital. If warning signs of eclampsia develop, doctors give drugs to prevent convulsions. They also end the pregnancy early, by delivering the fetus surgically or using drugs to stimulate labor. After the pregnancy ends, the patient usually recovers rapidly.
