Eclampsia - Pregnancy Pre Eclampsia Symptoms & Treatment

Eclampsia is a most severe degree of a disease which in its mild form is called pre-eclampsia, Any woman who is suffering from pre-eclampsia runs a risk of developing eclampsia which is characterized by the occurrence of convulsions or fits. The fits last approximately 1 minute and are followed by a period of unconsciousness. Eclampsia occurs in late pregnancy or it may begin during labour or even after delivery. When a convulsion happens, usually all the signs and symptoms of pre-eclampsia are present:

• Raised blood pressure.
• Generalized swelling or oedema.
• Protein in the urine.
• Abnormally high weight gain.

Symptoms of Eclampsia

The woman also suffers one or more of the following symptoms:

Severe headache
Severe headache occurring characteristically over the front part of the head above the eyes and associated with an abnormal rise in blood pressure. It is persistent and is not relieved by aspirin or other normal 'headache tablets'

Visual disturbances
These may be flashes of light before the eyes,coloured moving spots or blurring of vision and occasionally complete although temporary blindness.

Irritability
The woman is irritable, apprehensive and unable to tolerate noise or other mild disturbances.

Abdominal pain
Pain in the upper abdomen which may be mistaken for indigestion is usually severe, persistent and may be accompanied by actual vomiting which fails to relieve it.

Other Common Symptoms of Eclampsiaare:

• severe headaches,
• vision problems such as blurring or seeing flashing lights before the eyes,
• pain in the upper abdomen,
• vomiting, and
• sudden swelling of feet, ankles, face and hands and excessive weight gain because of fluid retention.

Causes of Eclampsia

• first pregnancy,
• family history of the condition, suggesting a genetic link,
• pre-eclampsia in a previous pregnancy. Women who have had pre-eclampsia have a 1 in 10 chance of developing the condition again in later pregnancies,
• teenagers and women over 40 years,
• women with medical problems (e.g. diabetes, kidney disease, migraine or high blood pressure), and
• multiple pregnancy (twins or triplets).

Eclampsia Treatment

At the onset of eclamptic fits the patient is heavily sedated to prevent their recurrence. Expert nursing care in hospital is absolutely essential. If fits occur at home, the doctor must be notified immediately and he will administer an appropriate sedative and arrange for the woman to be transferred to hospital. If labour starts spontaneously, it may progress rapidly and easily while the fits are controlled by sedatives. If it does not, then, depending on the woman's condition, it may be necessary to induce labour or perform a Caesarean section.

The best treatment for eclampsia is its prevention. Eclampsia is one of the most dangerous complications of pregnancy and even in the very best hands it may cause a patient's death. Even today approximately 1 in 20 women who develop eclampsia do not survive. The risk to the baby is even greater and pproximately 1 in 5 babies fail to live. These figures show the reality of the danger of eclampsia which in the majority of instances should never happen. An isolated case is however bound to occur, even with the most stringent antenatal care, because the mother's blood pressure rises suddenly and without warning.

Prevention Tips

Prevention is the keynote and one of the many advantages of careful supervision during pregnancy has been the early recognition and adequate treatment of pre-eclampsia which in turn has virtually eliminated eclampsia itself in Britain. Indeed it is now a more common condition postpartum than antepartum.