PEARLS
Preeclampsia Research Laboratories
Am I at risk for preeclampsia?
High blood pressure or preeclampsia happens to about 5% of all pregnant women in Australia.
There is not yet any screening test to tell a woman whether she is at significant risk of developing preeclampsia. A major aim for PEARLS and our colleagues in preeclampsia research worldwide is to develop a simple, effective and affordable screening test.
We can say, though, that there are circumstances that increase the chances of developing preeclampsia, and which make good medical care in pregnancy particularly important:
- First pregnancy
- Women at either end of the age range - teenage mothers and women over 35 years
- Assisted reproduction
- Twins or more
- New partner - the risk of preeclampsia is higher for the first pregnancy with a given partner
- Barrier methods of contraception including condoms - unless there is a period of exposure to the father's proteins before conception, the mother will be less "immunised" to the father's sperm.
Risk is also increased if the mother has a medical condition such as:
- essential hypertension
- diabetes
- lupus
- any previous kidney disease, inherited kidney cysts, childhood kidney infections or glomerulonephritis (inflammation of the kidney filters).
Copyright Professor Annemarie Hennessy: email for permission to reproduce material on this site
Site under development: email webmaster with suggestions or queries