Glossary

Term · Pregnancy: Your Body

eclampsia

Also: seizures in pregnancy, postpartum seizure, pregnancy seizure

Seizures during pregnancy or after birth linked to high blood pressure. It is a medical emergency that needs immediate care.

In plain words

Eclampsia is a seizure in a person who has high blood pressure from pregnancy, , or a related condition. It can happen during pregnancy, during labor, or in the days after birth. Seizures are an emergency. Call 911 right away if a seizure happens. Warning signs before a seizure can include severe headache, vision changes, pain under the ribs, and sudden swelling of the face or hands. Those symptoms need same-day or emergency care. Treatment is a hospital-based protocol that includes a medicine used to stop seizures and guard against more. Most people who have eclampsia recover well with prompt care. A mother who has had a seizure should be watched closely by her care team afterward.

The deeper version

Eclampsia is a generalized tonic-clonic seizure in the setting of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy that cannot be attributed to other neurological causes. The Magpie Trial Collaborative Group (Lancet, 2002) showed that reduced the risk of eclampsia in women with preeclampsia compared with placebo and other anticonvulsants, and it is standard first-line therapy for seizures per ACOG Practice Bulletin 222 (2020). The guideline also addresses blood pressure control and delivery planning. Postpartum eclampsia occurs in a meaningful minority of cases and can happen up to several weeks after birth. The differential includes intracranial hemorrhage, posterior reversible encephalopathy, stroke, and epilepsy, and controversy remains over long-term neurological follow-up.

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Sources

  • Magpie Trial Collaborative Group — Do women with pre-eclampsia, and their babies, benefit from magnesium sulphate? The Magpie Trial. The Lancet, 2002
  • American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists — Practice Bulletin 222: Gestational Hypertension and Preeclampsia, 2020

The Mothership Topic Wiki is general information for mothers and the people who care for them. It is not medical, legal, or mental-health advice and does not create a provider relationship. Experiences posted by members are their own. In an emergency call 911. If you are having thoughts of harming yourself, call or text 988.