This article discusses the significant decrease in fetal and infant mortality caused by another complication of pregnancy which is preeclampsia. Preeclampsia or also known as pregnancy induced hypertension or PIH is a disorder that generally develops late in pregnancy, usually after 20 weeks of gestation and is characterized by a sudden onset of high blood pressure, edema or swelling generally in the extremities, and protein in the urine. More often than not, five to ten percent of pregnant women will be diagnosed with preeclampsia, though half of those cases are of women who had high blood pressure prior to pregnancy. Symptoms of preeclampsia include severe swelling, sudden weight gain unrelated to eating, headaches and visual disturbances, as well as a rise in blood pressure.

Pregnant women who are submitting themselves to regular prenatal care will have preeclampsia diagnosed early on and managed effectively. If preeclampsia goes untreated, it could eventually lead to eclampsia, a much more serious complication of pregnancy. Preeclampsia that is not managed properly can also cause a number of other pregnancy complications such as premature delivery or intrauterine growth restriction. If a pregnant woman is diagnosed with preeclampsia, she have a one in three chance of developing the condition in her pregnancies in the future. Such risk is higher if the pregnancy in which she is diagnosed with preeclampsia is her first pregnancy, and lower if she has not developed preeclampsia in any previous pregnancies.
A regular prenatal care is the greatest way to detect preeclampsia in its early stages. If a woman is diagnosed and such case is mild, treatment will include changes in diet, exercise, and possibly medication to lower her blood pressure. If the preeclampsia is more severe, bed rest and careful monitoring, possibly in the hospital is the best way to treat it. Still, there is nothing that will cure preeclampsia except for delivery of the baby, which will likely be recommended as soon as the baby is physically mature enough and as close to 37 weeks as possible. The good news is that 97 percent of women with preeclampsia return to normal health after delivery.
Most women with mild preeclampsia are asymptomatic. Therefore, prenatal visits to check blood pressure and measure urinary protein are scheduled more frequently in the last half of pregnancy. Most women with preeclampsia never experience anything more than mild high blood pressure and small amounts of protein in the urine. Slightly elevated blood pressure over a few weeks or months does not have the same cardiovascular risks of chronic hypertension and losing protein in the urine due to preeeclampsia does not destroy the kidney. Women with preeclampsia can develop seizures, most patients are treated with an anticonvulsant medication. Magnesium sulfate is the drug most commonly used to prevent seizures. It is safe for both mother and baby. It is given intravenously to the mother during labor and usually for 24 hours.

POSTPARTUM

Since the only cure for preeclampsia is delivery of the baby and placenta. Inducing labor is necessary if severe preeclampsia occurs before term or before 37 weeks of gestation. Patients with mild preeclampsia who are not near term may be allowed to delay their delivery to allow the baby more time to grow and mature. The risks of preeclampsia and its potential complications must be balanced with the risks of prematurity. A labor can be induced with medications applied directly to the cervix, which causes the cervix to dilate and efface. Cervical ripening may also be accomplished using mechanical methods such as laminaria or a Foley catheter bulb. Most women will also require an intravenous medication, oxytocin, which stimulates the uterus to contract; uterine contractions further stimulate cervical dilation and effacement. If induction of labor does not completely dilate and efface the cervix, or if complications develop that require the baby to be delivered quickly, a cesarean birth is usually performed.

Restricting activity and taking antihypertensive medication can lower the blood pressure. These treatments may reduce the risk of stroke, but do not improve arterial constriction or prevent progression of preeclampsia. When it is near then end of the pregnancy, usually after 37 weeks, there is little to no benefit to allowing a woman with preeclampsia to continue being pregnant, most babies of this age do not have an increased risk of complications due to prematurity and will not require a special care nursery. Inducing labor minimizes the risk of harm to mother or fetus from worsening her preeclamptic condition.