Introduction & Background: Pre-eclampsia is a serious complication of pregnancy that is characterized by high blood pressure, swelling, and proteinuria as the primary symptoms. Preeclampsia affects 5-8 percent of pregnancies in the U. S. Medications can help to manage symptoms; however, delivery is the only way to resolve pre-eclampsia. Preterm delivery is sometimes necessary and is dependent on the gestational age of the fetus and the severity of symptoms in the mother. Women who have hypertension, diabetes, kidney disease or are pregnant with multiples are at higher-risk to develop pre-eclampsia.
Purpose Statement Question: The purpose of this research was to identify what complications occur in women after a pre-eclampsia diagnosis. A systematic review of the literature was used to identify relevant articles that address complications of pre-eclampsia.
Literature Review: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) were used to guide this systematic review. PubMed, CINAHL, and Google Scholar were used to identify relevant articles. Articles were published with the last 5 years (2018-2023). Search terms were “complications following pre-eclampsia.” A total of 128 results were found and reviewed. Nineteen articles were determined to be eligible for inclusion.
Findings: A pre-eclampsia diagnosis comes with considerable risks for women. Short-term risks include elevated blood pressure, preterm delivery, renal dysfunction, and electrolyte imbalance. Longer term complications include chronic hypertension, cardiovascular disorders, stroke, and later memory problems including Alzheimer’s disease.
Conclusions: A pre-eclampsia diagnosis confers significant risk to women. Complications can be severe and may affect women and infants long-term.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ETSU/oai:dc.etsu.edu:es-conf-1102 |
| Date | 23 April 2023 |
| Creators | Montgomery, Kristen, Marshall, Callie, Hensley, Chloe, Winseman, Adriana, Robles, Adela |
| Publisher | Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University |
| Source Sets | East Tennessee State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Source | Epsilon Sigma at-Large Research Conference |
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