Impedance cardiography facilitates differentiation of severe and superimposed preeclampsia from other hypertensive disorders.

Objective: To determine if hemodynamic profiling using noninvasive impedance cardiography (ICG) reliably identifies the patient with severe (SPRE) or superimposed (SuPRE) preeclampsia.

Methods: Late gestation hypertensive pregnant patients underwent immediate ICG evaluation. Findings were compared between patients subsequently achieving or not achieving American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists criteria for SPRE or SuPRE.

Results: Patients with severe disease were more likely to have depressed cardiac function and higher systolic blood pressure, mean arterial blood pressure, systemic vascular resistance, and thoracic fluid content compared to nonsevere hypertensive disease.

Conclusion: ICG hemodynamic profiling of late gestation hypertensive patients can rapidly and reliably identify those with SPRE or SuPRE.