A dangerous condition that may affect some women during Pregnancy Palm Bay FL is pre-eclampsia, which means high blood pressure during pregnancy. It is treatable, but if it isn’t treated, it can become eclampsia, or potentially fatal seizures. A woman with pre-eclampsia will need to deliver, either by being induced or having a Caesarean section. Symptoms of pre-eclampsia are high blood pressure; protein in the urine, called proteinuria; and swelling, particularly in the face, feet, and hands. However, the condition often has no symptoms, so it is important to have regular blood pressure checks during pregnancy care.
If a patient has pre-eclampsia, her treatment will include strongly encouraging her to quit smoking, if she smokes and if she has a low-risk Pregnancy Palm Bay FL. Quitting smoking has been shown to reduce the risk to the mother in previous cases of patients with pre-eclampsia. Depending on the patient’s condition, she may be encouraged either to exercise or to be on bed rest. The doctor may recommend taking low dosages of aspirin and the patient may receive anti-hypertensive medication or intravenous magnesium sulfate.
Another possible complication during Pregnancy Palm Bay FL is pregnancy-induced hypertension. This is essentially very similar to pre-eclampsia in that it also results in high blood pressure, except without the proteinuria. It appears at around 20 weeks. Some risk factors that may contribute to the development of pregnancy-induced hypertension are if the mother is either an adolescent or at least 35 of age, if she is carrying more than one fetus, if she is obese, if she already has hypertension, if she has diabetes, if anyone else in her family had pre-eclampsia, if she is African American, or if she has renal disease. There are other possible contributing factors. Patients with pregnancy-induced hypertension are carefully monitored, but there is no particular method of treatment other than to monitor her condition carefully.
Pre-natal care examinations monitor the health and development of the fetus as well as monitor the mother’s health. Typical ongoing examinations include a blood pressure check, monitoring of the fetal heart rate, a pelvic exam, and checking the mother’s weight. Ultrasounds are done several times during the course of the pregnancy.
