Heart disease in pregnancy and risk of pre-eclampsia: a Swedish register-based study.

Background And Aims: Pre-eclampsia complicates 3-5% of pregnancies worldwide and is associated with adverse outcomes for the mother and the offspring. Pre-eclampsia and heart failure have common risk factors, including hypertension, obesity and diabetes. It is not known whether heart failure increases the risk of pre-eclampsia.

Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging in preeclampsia complicated by pulmonary edema shows myocardial edema with normal left ventricular systolic function.

Background: Preeclampsia complicates approximately 5% of all pregnancies. When pulmonary edema occurs, it accounts for 50% of preeclampsia-related mortality. Currently, there is no consensus on the degree to which left ventricular systolic dysfunction contributes to the development of pulmonary edema.

Blood pressure as a risk factor for eclampsia and pulmonary oedema in pre-eclampsia.

Objective: We evaluated whether blood pressure and change in blood pressure measurements during pregnancy were associated with eclampsia or pulmonary oedema among women with pre-eclampsia.

Study Design: Observational study of women with eclampsia, pre-eclampsia complicated by pulmonary oedema and pre-eclampsia without end-organ complications (pre-eclampsia controls) at a large referral center in Cape Town, South Africa.

Main Outcome Measures: Blood pressure measurements at presentation for antenatal care were compared to measurements after a diagnosis of pre-eclampsia.

PROVE-Pre-Eclampsia Obstetric Adverse Events: Establishment of a Biobank and Database for Pre-Eclampsia.

Pre-eclampsia is a leading cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. The burden of disease lies mainly in low-middle income countries. The aim of this project is to establish a pre-eclampsia biobank in South Africa to facilitate research in the field of pre-eclampsia with a focus on phenotyping severe disease.