Preeclampsia - maternal risk factors and fetal growth

Abstract

Preeclampsia is a complex and variable maternal disturbance that ranges from a dramatic onset at early gestation to slowly developing symptoms towards term. Hypertension and renal involvement with proteinuria are cardinal signs, which are often accompanied by fluid retention, blood-clotting dysfunction, and reduced organ perfusion. HELLP (haemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet count) syndrome is regarded as a variant of preeclampsia, and the fulminante disease, eclampsia, includes convulsions. Preeclampsia is the main cause of maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality in western countries (1, 2), and in Nordic countries, 17 percent of maternal deaths have been ascribed to preeclampsia (2). Antenatal care in Norway includes on average 12 doctor/midwife consultations per pregnancy (3), and since blood pressure monitoring and urinary testing are main aims of the consultations, preeclampsia is a pregnancy complication that also generates substantial societal costs.