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Pre-eclampsia

katek
  • By katek
  • Posted January 27, 2009 at 3:04 am · 35 replies
  • In Open discussion
  • Shared with the public
3 Recommendations

I am interested in hearing about people's pre-eclampsia experiences.

(1) At what point in your pregnancy was your pre-eclampsia diagnosed?
(2) What were the symptoms that lead to the diagnosis? Or did your OB catch it via urine test or BP before you showed symptoms?
(3) What did your doctor recommend as a course of action?
(4) When did you end up delivering your baby?
(5) Did your doctor give you any sense of why the pre-eclampsia might have been triggered?
(6) Did your doctor give you any sense of how likely an event might occur again?

Thanks!

Explore topics in this discussion:

Eclampsia Heart failure Tylenol Prenatal care Back pain HELLP syndrome Pregnancy Lupus Gestational diabetes Stress Aspirin Allergies Stroke Diabetes Seizures Hypertension Pain Edema Zyrtec Deep vein thrombosis Preeclampsia

35 replies

rekhabose

I diagnosed my pre-e myself. My legs were like tree trunks, and I checked my blood pressure (140/90). I dipped my urine (heavily positive for protein). My prenatal care was suboptimal (not for lack of trying on my part). I called my doc (whom I had only met once-we moved from Oregon to San Diego when I was 22 weeks pregnant) and she told me to go to L and D triage. Of course, I never saw her again. However, the high risk docs that were following me in-house were excellent.
I was told I would deliver that night, but they ended up waiting almost the 48 hours to get the steroids injections. It took several hours after admission and just waiting in the room to get the first shot.
I was told all the common reasons for pre-e (first preg, 35 years old, etc), but no specific reasons. In fact, I was told that because they don't know what causes it, they can't figure out how to stop it. As far as I can tell, no trials have shown any significant benefit of any treatment although low dose aspirin seems to confer minor protection. As you know, Kate, they told me 25-30% chance of recurrence, but they couldn't tell me if it was more likely to occur later or earlier in gestation.

IansMommy

(1) At what point in your pregnancy was your pre-eclampsia diagnosed? 30 weeks

(2) What were the symptoms that lead to the diagnosis? My feet blew up like The Elephant Man's. I was gaining 5 pounds a week for a month. But my BP and protein levels were normal. Until I woke up with my left eye swollen. I immediately went to my OB and my BP was up to 145/85 and my proteins were 156.
This is my foot swollen so bad that I don't have ancles(and they got worst).my foot


(3) What did your doctor recommend as a course of action? I was referred to a specialist who immediately admitted me to the hospital.

(4) When did you end up delivering your baby? 2 days later. The Dr wanted to deliver Ian that day but I refused to sign the delivery waiver until the 48 hour period for steroid shots were over.

(5) Did your doctor give you any sense of why the pre-eclampsia might have been triggered? It just happens to 7% of pregnancies. Nothing triggers it. About one in 50 women are afflicted by severe preeclampsia

(6) Did your doctor give you any sense of how likely an event might occur again? About ten percent of women will have preeclampsia in a subsequent pregnancy. The chances of reoccurrence increase in women with high risk factors. There is a highly likely chance for it to be worst and happened earlier.

I gained 113 pounds, lost my vision and started to have seizures. My BP was stabilized at 200/130 and my proteins levels were 7000+.
Here some before and afters, I call them the ugly face of pre-E. P.S. I've lost 60 pounds already!

Before pregnancy(hence still blonde), Right after delivery at 293lbs! and now.
Photobucket>PhotobucketPhotobucket

deans-mom

1) At what point during pregnancy was your pre-eclampsia diagnosed? At 31w 1d
2)What were the symptoms that led to the diagnoses , or did you OB catch it via urine test or BP before you showed symptoms? At 25 weeks pregnant I quit sleeping for more than an hour a day. I had horrible back pain and in frequent urination. I went to see my Ob. My blood pressure was 168/142. He told me it was just up after walking so far into his office. (it dropped a few points after I had been there for 30 minutes. I told him I had not been feeling well that I was still working 15 hour shifts and I needed a doctors note to be put on light duty. He informed me that he had women who worked at fedex throwing around 75lbs boxes at 36 weeks. That " it is called pregnancy it has a due date suck it up - besides when you carry a boy it makes you ugly". I didn't really believe this but everyone I asked to describe there pregnancy experience told me you are miserable and swell. I guess just not to the point that I had. At 29 weeks I took my GTT and failed by 7 points so they informed me I needed to repeat it. I was still not sleeping and constantly swelling and my bp was going up. I complained again to my doctor and he told me swelling is part of pregnancy." Quit being a wussy " were his exact words. I repeated my GTT and later that night my feet were so swollen I lost all of the feeling in them and could not get my shoes off. My husband immediately took me to the ER. At the ER my blood pressure was 180/164. They told me it was just from sitting for a prolonged period ( at the movies and eating food with salt.) Go home and elevate my feet for 2 hours. I asked if they would check my urine or even have a doctor come look at me and they said there was no need to and sent me home.
By this point I had no feeling in my feet at all and I was cutting my husbands socks to put them on my feet. My face and hands are also starting to swell. I go back to see my OB And I am now a little over 30 weeks pregnant. I asked about bedrest and he said he felt no need to bedrest me at this point. Just quit exercising and after I get off work go home and lay down. I told him I am still not sleeping. He said it was probably due to allergies. Take a zyrtec and try to lie down. The next 3 days I don't sleep at all - not even 20 minutes . I started vomiting and had the worst headache I have ever experienced in my life. I called the doctor's office they told me to take 1 tylenol and lay down. I was really dizzy , couldn't stand, could not see at this point and literally thought my head was going to explode. I went to the doctors office again - saw a different OB and was admitted to the hospital. My bp was 262/248. I was lucky my baby and I were still alive.
3) When I was finally admitted to the hospital the gave me labetalol to try to get my BP down and gave me a little Butorphanol for the headache I had been experiencing for 3 days.
4) They could not get my diastolic Bp below 180. So I had a c- section 6 hours after admission.
5) I never got an ansewer .
6) I am going to go discuss this next month with another OB in the practice.




6) I am going to go discuss this next month with a different OB in the group.

maijnr

1) At what point? 1st pregnancy I was I was already 30 weeks...2nd preg I was only 22 weeks, maybe because we were watching like a hawk 2nd time around

2)Symptoms? 1st preg it was high BP and swollen legs during routine visit. 2nd preg I woke up one morning with a swollen face and I knew it was back with a vengeance..lol. Was placed on immediate bed rest.

3) course of action? 1st time around we went on BP meds and bed rest in hospital. unfortunately I had a placental abruption at 32 weeks and lost the baby. By the time we went to theatre, no heart beat.BP would get to 220/180 ha ha. At one point the cuff would not deflate.so the delay was to put BP down and then take baby out as it seemed risky to take her out with such readings.
2nd time around I was on complete bed rest from 22 weeks. From 12 weeks I was on low dose aspirin and daily dose of antioxidants. i also took calcium supplements. Had never eaten so healthy in my life.
But only lasted till 29 weeks.

4) 1st baby was lost at 32 weeks due to comlete placenta abruption. My son was born at 29 weeks

5)I had an increased chance of having it because I had it in 1st preg jus before 30 weeks. Its there in my family. my mum had BP issues with all of us(3 of us) but always got to term although non of us where more than 2kg at 40weeks

6) i had it 2nd time around so I wont ask him anything again. infact I have given up because both times i almost lost my life. this last preg I could not breathe anymore. I was so big and could not walk by 26 weeks.Its almost exactly like Iansmommy...Infact my husbnd saw her photos and said so yu not the only one...Wil also post mine and you'l see what pre E did to me. Im stil trying to lose weight and get my looks back...

Henrysmom

(1) At what point in your pregnancy was your pre-eclampsia diagnosed? 31 wks

(2) What were the symptoms that lead to the diagnosis? Or did your OB catch it via urine test or BP before you showed symptoms? My OB caught it with my urine and BP (on a Friday). I must've been in the beginning stages b/c they had been monitoring me all week. That Monday an US showed the baby was measuring small and had a 2-vessel cord. I went to a high risk doctor later that day and then followed up with my regular OB on Wed and Fri. Nobody said anything about PE until Fri and they were checking my urine and BP every time I went in. I was admitted Fri.

(3) What did your doctor recommend as a course of action? Admitted, but the admittance was more based on the status of the baby who had a low heart rate.

(4) When did you end up delivering your baby? 3 days later... enough time for steroid shots. The delivery was due to lack of blood flow and not the PE.

(5) Did your doctor give you any sense of why the pre-eclampsia might have been triggered? No idea. They did tell me it was unusual for someone to develop PE with their second baby if there were no problems with the first baby. I do have a friend that also got PE with her second but didn't have any issues with her first.

(6) Did your doctor give you any sense of how likely an event might occur again? She didn't give me a percentage, but said she couldn't tell me that I wouldn't have any of the things that occurred happen again (2 vessel cord, IUGR, PE, placental abruption). I was left with the impression that at least one of those things would likely occur again. I have no plans to have more children... I don't think I could handle the stress of knowing something could happen again!

Mom2Elijah

(1) At what point in your pregnancy was your pre-eclampsia diagnosed? I was diagnosed at 24w2d

(2) What were the symptoms that lead to the diagnosis? Or did your OB catch it via urine test or BP before you showed symptoms? The only thing that I saw was swollen in my face, legs and feet. Not severe at the point - I just thought it was normal pg swelling. When I went in for my 24w appointment, they found protein in my urine and my BP was 182/102

(3) What did your doctor recommend as a course of action? They immediately sent me over to the hospital for a 24hr watch for the BP and urine. Things were not getting any better and that night (early early morning) I was sent to another hospital that could deliver a preemie.

(4)When did you end up delivering your baby? 24w5d. He was delivered that Sunday (3 days after I was first sent to the hospital). My BP was not stabilizing, I was not passing urine, I was horribly swollen and my liver was starting to fail. They delieverd my son by c-section that night. He weighed in at 1lb 4oz and was 11.25" long.

(5) Did your doctor give you any sense of why the pre-eclampsia might have been triggered? They really don't know - all the research that I've done and what my dr had told me, they don't know why women get this. Some say age, first pregnancies, etc. None of my sisters or mom ever had this with any of their pregnancies.

(6) Did your doctor give you any sense of how likely an event might occur again? He couldn't give me an exact percentage, but did say I will most likely get it again. They have me on folgard, a prenatal vitamin and a baby aspirin everyday with hopes that taking this now will lessen the chances when I do get pregnant again. He told me it should be later in the pregnancy and not as severe.

Boston

I actually had no symptoms. I do remember walking at work around 28 weeks and thinking I was having visual disturbances (I saw a couple black spots that went right away). It happened so fast that I was like "Oh well". I guess I should have taken better note of that happening. Around 28 weeks, my blood pressure went from wonderful to about 140/100, but still wasn't swollen like I was reading I should be. i They had me lay down at the doctor and rest, took my blood pressure again and it hadn't changed. I don't think they believed I was developing Pre-E because I didn't fit the profile or have symptoms....but I was! They started running more tests and I ended up delivering my son a couple weeks later due to the fact that he had severe IUGR.

I am 14 weeks into my second pregnancy and so far, my BP is just perfect.....I am praying it stays there. They haven't really told me the chance of developing it again, but I am seeing a specialist this pregnancy and he is keeping a close watch on everything.

Boston

I am also on a baby asprin everyday with this pregnancy!

chloe_mom2preemies

(1) With my first it was 33 weeks, this time was 27w5d

(2) First time my BP was creeping, I was measuring a bit behind, my legs were beyond swollen, I started gaining excessive amounts of weight and then finally at 33 weeks my protien was outrageous! Second time everything was seemingly normal but my eyes were swollen every morning and I was just starting to feel weird, I went into L&D, my BP was not bad but my protien was up.

(3) Admitting me for observation. There were cord flow issues with both pregnancies and ultimately I ended up delivering both times due to Reverse Diastolic Flow meaning the blood was going out instead of in when it was supposed to.

(4) First was 34 weeks 4pounds 2oz and the second was 28w3d 2 pounds 2 oz

(5) I have had all the tests for underlying disorders, still waiting on the results.

(6) 99%

MomtoBabyDale

1) I was diagnosed at 24w1d.
2) My ankles became very swollen. At first, I thought it was due to the extreme heat that we were experiencing, but the swelling did not go away. The doctor sent me in for a leg ultrasound to make sure I didn't have any clots in my legs. After the ultrasound, I went home and took a nap. When I woke up, I felt fine but I decided to check my blood pressure (out of curiosity). I have a BP monitor at home because I also have Polycystic Kidney Disease, which can cause high blood pressure. My BP was slightly elevated so I called the doctor. He had me go to the hospital to have it checked out. By the time I got there (20 minutes later), the BP was extremely high (I don't remember the numbers) and they admitted me - that is when they started me on the Mag. (Horrible experience).
3) I was admitted to the hospital and my OB signed me over to a perinatologist.
4) I delivered my baby 5 days later (May 25, 2008)
5) They think it may have been related to my Polycystic Kidney Disease. They told me I should have been seeing a high-risk doctor from the beginning. In the beginning, my OB-GYN told me I would not need to and that it should be a very uneventful pregnancy.
6) I can't remember what the doctor said my chances of it happening again would be. He did tell me that this is no indication that it would happen again next time around. He wants me to be in the best shape possible before trying to conceive again. Let me just say - I will be a nervous wreck when I get pregnant again (which won't be healthy for the baby, I am sure).

kkbadham

Wow. Interesting questions Kate.

(1) At what point in your pregnancy was your pre-eclampsia diagnosed?
26 weeks with my first pregnancy, diagnosed with PIH, but no protein in my urine. Second pregnancy was treated for PIH throughout and on meds the entire time. Ultimately my BP spiked again at 26 weeks but no protein spill until 37 weeks (yea!)

(2) What were the symptoms that lead to the diagnosis? Or did your OB catch it via urine test or BP before you showed symptoms?
Elevated BP was the only symptom I had with my first pregnancy which was caught at a regular OB visit. I was brought back the next day for a recheck. When it was even higher, they had me lay down and rest and then rechecked it. My BP was taken by several different people, including the doctors. At that point I was sent to a high risk hospital for further monitoring and care. I never developed full blown pre-e but my daughter was born early due to fetal distress. My OB told me after delivery that the placenta was failing and pre-e would have developed soon.
With my son, my BP was creeping into the danger zone starting at 26 weeks but was kept under control until about 32 weeks and then it started to climb higher and I started to have some swelling. During this time I also tore up my knee (a stupid story I won't share here) and ended up doing a month of PT which added to the swelling. The pre-e diagnosis came from 24 hour urine test results at 37 weeks.

(3) What did your doctor recommend as a course of action? I was placed on labetalol both times. After the initial diagnosis I was hospitalized in L&D ICU on mag sulfate and prepared for delivery at 26 weeks. They thankfully waited for the results from the 24 hour urine which came back clean. The mag did its job and lowered my bp. Once I was stable I was sent home (3 1/2 days in hospital) on meds and modified bedrest until delivery. I was able to move around, but no lifting, activity that would raise my heartrate, etc. But could lounge around the house. If it wasn't so nerve-wracking it would have been nice. I had an ultrasound at 32 weeks to check fetal size and blood flow and that is when they found that Anna was in full breech and had the cord around her neck 3 times. After that I had a fetal NST which was non-reactive. I was sent back to the high risk hospital for a biophysical profile which confirmed her position and cord issues. I was then put on a BP monitor and fetal monitor in triage and over the course of the next 5 hours my BP went up and up and up and she started to have decelerations in her heart rate. She was born 2 hours later by emergency c-section.
With my second pregnancy I was on meds the entire time and monitored like crazy. Twice monthly BP checks in the office, at home checks 3x/day, baseline urine tests and fetal monitoring, stepped up ultrasounds, by 26 weeks I was in the OB ofc weekly until 32 weeks and then twice weekly for fetal NSTs. During this time I also had frequent monitoring for BP in triage along with PIH labs and countless home 24 hour urine tests. Again I was taken off work at 26 weeks (good thing my administration likes me!) and on bed rest for the duration. Initially it was modified bed rest, towards the end it was more strict. I was also asked to drink LOTS of fluid. I was drinking nearly a gallon of water a day and they said that is probably why I didn't swell more and the swelling was nearly gone in about 2 weeks.

(4) When did you end up delivering your baby? Anna was born at 32w6d, is considered a 33 weeker. Evan was born at 37w5d.

(5) Did your doctor give you any sense of why the pre-eclampsia might have been triggered?
He told us it was the second most common pregnancy complication and for me, thought that I might have had undiagnosed chronic hypertension. It probably didn't help that I was a little over weight when I got pregnant but he didn't think that was the cause. I also have a fairly stressful job and once on bedrest my bp was better. The second time around, my knee injury could have played a part (excruciating pain and swelling) and definitely effected my BP.

(6) Did your doctor give you any sense of how likely an event might occur again?
He told me (when I was in his office pregnant 6 months later) that the odds were less than 40% and that the earlier the onset of symptoms increased the possibility. He told me 26 weeks was pretty early so we were prepared.
The entire staff at my OB's ofc. was so happy for us that we made it full term the second time around. I learned that even though this was so difficult for me and my family, this was tough for them too. They did an amazing job monitoring me for the first sign of trouble. I am so thankful to my team of doctors for the care I received. I know that my son would have been born prematurely if it weren't for their collective efforts to keep me pregnant. I also know from posts of others that the care I received is not the standard practice, but should be.

mrbest

(1) At what point in your pregnancy was your pre-eclampsia diagnosed?

25.5 wks

(2) What were the symptoms that lead to the diagnosis? Or did your OB catch it via urine test or BP before you showed symptoms?

My legs were so swollen I couldn't get my boots on. My husband had a digital blood pressure kit and he took my pressure which was very high. He called my doc who said to come to the hospital right away. Turns out I was spilling protein and was admitted to hospital w/pre-E.

In addition, the baby was measuring very small as of a 20 weeks sono. In hindsight, this was due to the PE.

(3) What did your doctor recommend as a course of action?

Hospital bedrest until baby had to be delivered. I was maxed out on blood pressure meds, had round the clock sonos, constant fetal monitoring, steroid shots and a horrible night of mag sulfate.

(4) When did you end up delivering your baby?

31 wks

(5) Did your doctor give you any sense of why the pre-eclampsia might have been triggered?

No clue

(6) Did your doctor give you any sense of how likely an event might occur again?

My doctor doesn't know but I've read online my chances of reoccurance are up to 80%.

dustarella

(1) At what point in your pregnancy was your pre-eclampsia diagnosed?
- 31 weeks, 2 days at a regular prenatal appointment

(2) What were the symptoms that lead to the diagnosis? Or did your OB catch it via urine test or BP before you showed symptoms?
- I had gotten really really swollen (my ankles looked just as bad as, if not worse than, IansMom's. They actually hurt the skin was pulled so tight. I had gained 14 pounds in 2 weeks since my last appointment. I was also very very tired. I had no visual problems, headaches, or right-side lower chest/upper tummy pain, so I didn't really think anything was wrong. But at that appointment, my doctor found my blood pressure was really high (after being low for months), and lots of protein in the urine.

(3) What did your doctor recommend as a course of action?
- Her office is right next to the hospital, so she had me admitted right after the appointment for observation. I had no idea what to expect and was very surprised that they kept me overnight - actually 2 nights. She said she'd like me to stay on bedrest for 5 weeks and they'd deliver the baby during week 36. She gave me the steroid shots on both days, just in case.

(4) When did you end up delivering your baby?
- After a 2 day hospital stay my BP and protein was still going up (still no other symptoms though - the nurses were AMAZED that I wasn't having disturbed vision or painful headaches because of how elevated my protein was - and I guess my platelets had a problem too after blood tests). Dax was born via c-section at 4:36 PM on week 31, day 4 of his gestation.

(5) Did your doctor give you any sense of why the pre-eclampsia might have been triggered?
- She said there's really no way to know. I'm not overweight, nor ever have been. My stress levels are pretty normal. I was only 30 years old. My sister, who has never been pregnant, has had lots of problems with Deep Vein Thrombosis, so I'm thinking some sort of blood clotting gene may have triggered it in my case? I may get tested for that type of thing if I decide to get pregnant again.

(6) Did your doctor give you any sense of how likely an event might occur again?
- There's definitely a higher chance of it happening again than not. They will watch me really really close if I get pregnant again. At this point, I'd rather just adopt than risk all of that again!

katek

IansMommy, thank you for sharing your photos. I confess that when you posted some pictures on another thread, I was wondering about how quickly you were able to lose some of the weight, but I figured that it would be rude to ask. I’m very glad that you offered your experience (and didn’t leave me in suspense). You look like you are recovering beautifully. Your body must have taken quite a beating by the experience, and yet it is wonderful that you are doing so well today! Congratulations! Both you and your child have strong constitutions. Not everyone could handle that.

Thanks, everyone, for sharing the details of your ordeals. There are a lot of diverse experiences as well as common themes in your posts. When researchers don’t have a clue about why something tends to occur, it is important that they examine series of anecdotes to see if there is an underlying theme that could be tested. I know that they don’t have a strong grip about preeclampsia, but I’m not satisfied with “sometimes thing just happen” explanation. There is a reason or set of reasons physiologically for why we experienced what we did. It is just a matter of figuring out how to uncover those reasons. I hope researchers will do so in the near future.

IansMommy

We're not Angelina Jolie so it will take some time to loose the weight. I got SO big that I had to wear two 2XL hospital gowns; one in back and one in front because one only went half way around. And they had to get a special 2xl BP cuff that could fit on my arm.

I had an emergency c-section, and Ian was in the back of my abdominal cavity so they had to take out all my insides to get to him. My stomach really protrudes, so I still looked 8 months preggo until recently, now I only look 5 lol! I guess it takes time for everything in there to settle back in place.

Thanks for the pat on the back. I lost about 30 pounds during my hospital stay. I would have night sweats, soak my bed sheets and be thinner. It was crazy!

It's really hard to be robbed of all your beauty and confidence in a month. I say I wanted to be a MILF not a big mama. But Ian and Hubby loves me the way I am :) And I will loose most of the weight. I'm getting rid of the size 5/6 and 7/8, I'm aiming to be a 9/10 or 11/12.

Twoearly

Hi, katek.
FYI: You're always so helpful, encouraging and informative, so any info you want, I'm willing to try to find for you.
I had systolic and diastolic numbers that were both elevated by 30 points, but my normal blood pressure is about 89/60 (measured many, many times), so the higher pressure wasn't high enough to concern anybody. Although I wasn't diagnosed with preeclampsia myself, my girlfriend, who I went to some OB visits with, was.
She had leg swelling about 33 to 34 weeks, so at her doctor's visit at 34 weeks they noted her increased blood pressure (I don't remember exact reading but it was only moderately elevated), and they checked her urine and found some protein.
The doctor told her to go home and said they would just keep monitoring her and by a week later the protein was high enough that they decided to induce labor at just over 35 weeks. She also developed a bad headache.
They never gave her an explanation and reassured her that pre-eclampsia in her next pregnancy would be less likely than in her first pregnancy. She had two more children and no recurrence of preeclampsia.

Extra info: Her preeclampsia was a little more than 17 years ago, and she was 23 at the time. Both parents are Scandinavian, and her mother did not have preeclampsia during three pregnancies, which all took place between ages 21 and 25.

FYI: Are you working with any study on preeclampsia?
If so, there was a very, very good article in The New Yorker a couple (few?) years back about preeclampsia. I had clipped it, but we've moved since then and I don't know if I still have a copy or where it might be.

Also, do you follow the research on the role of carbon monoxide's protective effects against preeclampsia? (Obviously further research needs to be done, including how to administer CO in a safe and effective way.)

I think some researchers were also looking into whether certain supplements could have protective or preventive effects.

I don't think the fish oil research taken as a whole is conclusive, but if it's something you're thinking about for a future pregnancy, it's worth reading up on.

Henrysmom

Hi Kate,

I just thought I'd mention there's another thread on here concerning zinc deficiency. I did just a little looking on-line and saw a couple of things linking zinc deficiency with pre-eclampsia (as well as growth restriction). I find that very interesting. I haven't had a chance to go back and dig further. I am going to request that my GI test my son for a zinc deficiency since he never appears to be hungry. It may be nothing, but I feel its worth a look. Unfortunately, I can't go back in time to see how I was when I was pregnant, although it makes me wonder! A weakened immune system is also a sign of a zinc deficiency and I was sick the entire time I was pregnant (of course, pregnancy also weakens your immune system, so its hard to know).

Amanda

katek

Hi Twoearly,

I am a researcher in the social sciences. My specialty is survey research. If I could go back in time, I'd become a medical researcher. The best that I think that I can do is learn as much as I can and then try to become some kind of community advocate. I haven't read The New Yorker article, but thanks for the tip. I'll do a Lexis-Nexis search on it tonight and see if I can locate it.

I haven't read about carbon monoxide's protective effects. Is there a group of researchers that I should search for when trying to read up on it? Has it been published in major journals or is it in the exploratory phase?

Hi Amanda,

I hadn't read the zinc deficiency thread yet. Thanks for the tip!


Part of my interest is wanting to find a solution for everyone. And part of my interest is self-interest. I plan to find a high risk OB once I stop pumping at the end of RSV season. I want to be as informed as possible before we make a decision about whether to have another biological child. I really want to have another biological child, but like dustarella, I'm concerned about the risks...more for the future baby's sake than mine. I don't want to put another child through what Henry had to experience if I can help it. Henry has done beautifully but part of that is luck (especially given the amount of things that doctors don't know).


My other topic that I'm passionate about is the NEC research. On that topic, I've actually done a lot more reading than preeclampsia. NEC, of course, is complicated b/c it can be triggered by viral, fungal, and bacteria problems. But I'm not satisfied with the "well, the kids have immature digestive systems...so you know, it happens...." Of course they have immature digestive systems (they were born prematurely), but that answer is kind of lame given that a lot of preemies don't get NEC. So what is the mechanism or mechanisms behind it?

In both of these areas (NEC and preeclampsia), I strongly suspect that parents have a lot of information that could contribute to finding the cures or keys to prevention. This is in part why I get so angry when doctors don't listen (I mean really listen) to what parents (or patients in general) are telling them and don't seem to be truly curious about the human condition.

One of my favorite scholars once told me that: "The answers are there. It is just a matter of asking the right questions."

Twoearly

Hi, katek.
I lost my access to lexis nexis when I left my job, and sometimes I miss it, but fortunately for me, it seems The New Yorker has free access to archived stories:

http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/07/24/060724fa_fact?currentPage=all

As for the carbon monoxide research, it's got a ways to go, I think.
I thought I originally had read about it in a news story the same year I had read the New Yorker story.
I can't find it, but The American Journal of Pathology has something about it:

http://ajp.amjpathol.org/cgi/content/full/169/3/774

Other preeclampsia links that may be of interest are at:

http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/266/2/237

And then, finally,
One study found what may be a link between virus exposure and preeclampsia. The sample size was terribly small, but it is an interesting path for further research to find out if there's really something to it:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/health/research/04baby.html

missypm

1) At what point in your pregnancy was your pre-eclampsia diagnosed? 29 weeks
(2) What were the symptoms that lead to the diagnosis? Or did your OB catch it via urine test or BP before you showed symptoms? At my 28 week appointment, I had gained 12 pounds in 3 weeks and was swollen. I was supposed to start coming in every two weeks, but my OB told me I was at risk for toxemia, and that I needed to come back in a week, which was on Monday morning. Saturday night and Sunday night, I got up during the night to go to the bathroom. I had trouble breathing when I went to lay back down and had to sit up. It was more severe Sunday night into Monday morning, but was intermittent. I was actually fine right before my appointment, and then had trouble breathing after walking from the bathroom to the exam room. My b/p at the office was fine-110/70-but doc sent me to L&D to be checked for blood clots. After being taken to triage, the nurse was concerned about my protein (I didn't know this but DH said she looked very concerned) and my b/p was 184/114.
(3) What did your doctor recommend as a course of action? I was admitted and was told I would have the baby at midnight on Monday. So, no food or drink. They had a horrible time getting IVs in me because I was so swollen-my arms and hands and everything looked horrible. Anyway, at midnight on Monday, the doctor told me that we were going to try to shoot for Wednesday at noon so I could get my steriod shots.
(4) When did you end up delivering your baby? I got progressively worse during the night-still had horrible problems breathing and b/p was through the roof. The doctor came in Tuesday morning and said I was having the baby at noon that day (which was about 4 hours away).
(5) Did your doctor give you any sense of why the pre-eclampsia might have been triggered? No
(6) Did your doctor give you any sense of how likely an event might occur again? He sent me to a high risk OB-I actually just went 2 weeks ago. Based on my situation, he and the geneticist both told me a 15-20% chance of recurrence. If I do have it again, the peri told me I should get further along (I was 29 weeks). I am still waiting on blood work from the peri to see if I have any blood clotting disorders. I also have PCOS, which is a risk factor for preeclampsia. I didn't have any b/p issues prior to pregnancy and my b/p resolved on its own within a week of delivery, so in my case, that's good, but the sudden, severe onset is what makes it so bad for me.

A great website is www.preeclampsia.org.

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