Eclampsia of Pregnancy

Tuesday, December 15, 2009 at 8:40 am

Eclampsia of Pregnancy updates :- Eclampsia an acute and life-threatening complication of pregnancy, is characterized by the appearance of tonic-clonic seizures, usually in a patient who had developed preeclampsia.

Eclampsia excludes seizures and coma that happen during pregnancy but are due to preexisting or organic brain disorders.

Signs and symptoms

Typically patients show signs of pregnancy-induced hypertension and proteinuria prior to the onset of the hallmark of eclampsia, the eclamptic convulsion. Other cerebral signs may precede the convulsion such as nausea, vomiting, headaches, and cortical blindness. In addition, with the advancement of the pathophysiological process, other organ symptoms may be present including abdominal pain, liver failure, signs of the HELLP syndrome, pulmonary edema, and oliguria. The fetus may have been already compromised by intrauterine growth retardation, and with the toxemic changes during eclampsia may suffer fetal distress. Placental bleeding and placental abruption may occur.

Source wikipedia