Maternal whole blood viscosity in pregnancy hypertension.

Hemoconcentration is prominent in preeclampsia. Concomitant changes in the flow properties of maternal blood, i.e.

Longitudinal changes in blood viscosity are correlated with fetal outcome.

The importance of longitudinal changes in maternal Whole Blood Viscosity (WBV) for fetal well-being was investigated. Consecutive WBV data were available, obtained from 44 pregnancies before 36 0/7 weeks. An increase in WBV was found to be associated with an unfavorable fetal outcome.

The influence of maternal whole blood viscosity on fetal growth.

To explore the relevance of the rheological properties of maternal blood in pregnancy to fetal growth a study of whole blood viscosity (WBV) was conducted in the early third trimester of 138 pregnancies. A significant negative correlation was found between WBV at low shear rate and birthweight centile. As the rheological parameters were found to be negatively correlated with the placenta coefficient, an independent role for maternal WBV seems likely.

Blood coagulation in pregnancy induced hypertension.

Decreased plasma levels of antithrombin III (AT III) are observed in women with severe pregnancy-induced or aggravated hypertension. Low AT III levels correlate with the platelet count and with symptoms of maternal and foetal morbidity. Therefore, in clinical practice both the platelet count and the plasma AT III levels provide significant information regarding the clotting disturbances in toxemic patients.