PARENTHOOD.IE

Pre-eclampsia is caused by high blood pressure, hypertension, and high protein levels in your urine, and is more common in women carrying multiples. About 5-10% of pregnant women suffer from a condition called pre-eclampsia and happens primarily to first time mothers.

The condition will show up any time after 20 weeks pregnancy, but occurs most often in the third trimester. It is also referred to as pre-eclamptic toxaemia or pregnancy-induced hypertension, and can be life-threatening if it is not treated.

High blood pressure can in time affect your kidneys, which for an undeveloped baby can be very dangerous. Not all cases of pre-eclampsia are a cause for major concern, but in all cases it needs to be monitored by your GP.

Symptoms

Pre-eclampsia might not have noticeable symptoms, and during a first pregnancy it could be hard to know what symptoms are normal for a pregnancy and what can be a sign of a problem. Your ante-natal checks will therefore include a check of your blood pressure and a urine sample.

There are some physical signs you should be aware of, these can indicate possible pre-eclamplsia. Watch out for:
•    Sudden and excessive weight gain
•    Excessive swelling of hands and feet
•    Problems with vision, such as blurred vision
•    Headaches
•    Irritability
•    Abdominal pain, usually just below the ribs
•    Dizziness
•    Nausea or vomiting

What causes pre-eclampsia

Simply, the cause is unknown. It can occur to women with no history of high blood pressure, but is more likely with women that do.

Complications of pre-eclampsia

Pre-eclampsia can limit the amount of blood that flows to the placenta, and thereby the baby. This results in the baby getting less oxygen and nutrition, which can cause breathing problems and a lower birth rate. The limited blood can also cause a haemorrhage as the placenta prematurely detaches itself from the uterine wall, which puts both the mother’s and baby’s life at risk.

Severe pre-eclampsia can in rare cases cause eclampsia, which are sudden seizures brought on by hypertension. These may even occur after the delivery of the baby, but if they happen during the pregnancy you may require an emergency caesarean delivery of your baby.

How to deal with pre-eclampsia

The only way to prevent or cure pre-eclampsia is giving birth, and your baby may need to be delivered prematurely.

The possible complications make continuous check-ups vital and the pregnancy can be judged dangerous, which means that you might not be able to go full term and your baby born prematurely. Depending on the stage of the pregnancy, you could be recommended to take a type of steroids, corticosteroids, which will help the baby develop the lungs. This will improve the baby’s chances, in case of a premature birth.

Women with severe pre-eclampsia will have continuous blood pressure and urine sample checks, to monitor the hypertensia and protein levels. Your doctor could order full bed rest, at home or in a hospital, blood pressure medication and monitoring. The blood pressure medication is also to avoid pre-eclampsia resulting in eclampsia seizures.

For more information
www.preeclampsia.org/