About 7 percent of first-time mothers and 1 to 2 percent of mothers having subsequent pregnancies develop preeclampsia. Increased risk has been associated with teenage mothers, mothers over 40 and African American women, according to experts. The condition occurs suddenly without warning and sometimes in as little as a few hours. Usually, a pregnant women with preeclampsia develops dangerously high blood pressure and begins secreting protein in the urine. In some cases, the condition may progress to eclampsia, a series of potentially fatal seizures.
Preeclampsia is still one of the leading causes of maternal mortality.
The need to screen and detect the condition early was one of the original reasons the medical community many years ago began recommending regular prenatal visits. Although the high blood pressures accompanying preeclampsia can be treated with drugs, the only effective treatment for the condition is immediate delivery of the baby. Search Copyright 1998 Regents of the University of California. All rights Reserved. Please direct all comments and questions to the Daybreak Editor.