Pre-eclampsia anyone?

moquat

FTM here just diagnosed with pre-eclampsia at 34 weeks. We were in a midwife practice but risked out due to the diagnosis, switching over to OB. Anyone else in this boat?

I am a teacher and was planning on going back to teach, but I can't go back to work now. Not officially on bed rest, but trying to take it easy and make it to 37 weeks. We are asleep in the middle of renovating our kitchen, were hoping to have a little more time to get it done but baby could come really at any time. Just hurried up and bought a car seat, diapers, baby bath, all of the essentials to be prepared. 

jennielu

My doctor has been reluctant to answer the question when I ask her, so I am not positive whether I HAVE pre-e or am just high risk for developing it. I have had slightly high BP throughout this whole pregnancy, and elevated proteins in my urine around week 24. THIS week (32) my urine was clean and BP was a little down. But, I start NSTs in 2 weeks (I'll be 34 weeks then).

TLDR; I'm being watched carefully for pre-e although no symptoms yet. My doc will induce me at either 37 or 38 weeks, depending on how things go. 

maf9866

@moquat if you don't get a lot of answers, it might be because we've discussed this a few times before so I would suggest a quick search and find the other discussion and you may find more answers. 

For both you and @jennielu what were your blood pressure numbers? My experience with dd was that as soon as you have the elevated blood pressure and the protein- you have it. End of story. HOWEVER, my last obgyn's office had 7 Drs and no one agreed on my care. I had a very mild case (like just over the line bp wise) and one dr insisted I be induced at 37 weeks. We scheduled the induction, went in and the delivering dr that day said no way, it was medically unnecessary to induce at 37 weeks and sent me home. I went back to obgyn's office, saw a different dr (actually one of the partners of that office) and she concurred. I did need to be induced but at 39 weeks. 

If if your blood pressure is really high, 37 weeks is the cut off but if you're like me. I would let them know you want to wait until 39 weeks. I was mad but in the end, happy that I didn't 'rob' my dd of 2 more weeks to grow inside. 

I was put on bed rest the last month (right after official diagnoses) but it really was only a 'no more work, try not to be on your feet a lot' kind of thing. 

I know it's super frustrating when you can't get straight answers from you Drs so I hope both of you get the care you need in these last few weeks. 

moquat

Huh, I searched for pre-eclampsia but didn't find much on our board. Maybe I'm getting a little foggy?

My BP had been completely normal (even low at times) during my entire pregnancy until Monday when I went in for a checkup and my BP was 150/90. The practice I was going to was a free-standing birth center, so the midwife sent me to their cooperating hospital 15 minutes away for a non-stress test, urine and bloods. BP remained high for the hour or two I was there (though did go down to around 135/85 at times) but baby looked great on the monitor. They never told me the result of the urine test but my bloods looked good. They sent me home with a dx of gestational hypertension, a 24 hr pee test and told me to stop working. 

Returned to the hospital with SO MUCH PEE yesterday, got hooked up to the monitors again and did an ultrasound. BP was still high. Urine protein just above the cutoff (383 mg/24 hr, their cutoff is 300). So they said I have mild pre-eclamplsia, can't work, and need NSTs 2x per week and one office visit per week unless things start going south. They seem pretty set on delivering at 37 weeks. No sign of IUGR; lil guy is right at the 45th percentile. Granted, he was measuring a week or two ahead for the whole pregnancy and my husband is a giant, so he certainly may have slowed down relative to his own hugeness.

maf9866

I was thinking it may be hard because some just refer to it as pre-e. I can't remember who started the thread before but maybe someone will click in who remembers. 

I did dos have the twice weekly nst's too. Which besides just being a pain because my Drs office was 45 minutes away, I actually liked. It was kind of relaxing hanging out there in comfy chairs, eating ice and watching the baby. It sounds like you are a lot like how I was with the mild form. It's amazing how different Drs have different opinions (even in the same practice). When I went off of work (I was bank teller at the time) my bp dropped 20 points by the next appt so I am a firm believer that it helps. When I went in to deliver, I had to wear blood pressure cuffs on my legs to keep circulation up. But luckily since my bp wasn't too high, I didn't have to have magnesium. It did start to climb when it was coming time to push, but luckily she came out quickly. If she hadn't, I would have had to have a c-section. 

none of that is to make you nervous, but that was my experience in a similar situation. Take it easy these next few weeks!!

jennielu

Thanks @maf9866, that's helpful. My BP had been ~140/85 at the hospital, but lower at home. This morning I measured 128/78 at home. I've been having some hard feelings this week about having this baby before she's ready (unless things go south), so that's good advice. 

EISG918

@moquat **Lurking from Jan 17** I had severe pre-E with my son last pregnancy and my care was very similar to yours except I only made it to 36 weeks. It really sucks that you have to stop work now but hopefully it's not too much of a burden on you guys. I would just continue to be prepared for ANY time the Dr wants to pull the plug, since it can change so fast. I was sent for monitoring at 35+5 and was told I was not going home without a baby. My bags weren't packed so DH had to throw (literally) all
my stuff in my bag and he did a horrible job lol. 

Good luck and I hope you make it to your goal.

Kaytee1087

It was me that started a thread a little while back. I'm not in this boat this time, but I was with DD 7 years ago. Mine was severe. My blood pressure was in the 210/150 range, my proteins were extremely high, and I gained 10lbs in water weight. It all happened in a 2 week period. I was 34 weeks, and was immediately sent from my doc's office to the hospital. I was hooked up to a magnesium drip to keep seizures at bay. They gave me a set of two steroid shots 12 hours apart to help her lungs develop. A day and half later I had a c-section. Keep in mind mine was a severe case, but because of how quickly it can progress, it's definitely something to keep a very close eye on. Again, not another story to scare you but because of what I went through I'm a huge proponent for being your own advocate, keep all your appointments, and ask lots and lots of questions.

Also, Preeclampsia.org has an interesting write up on how effective is bed rest at preventing escalating pre-e that's worth a read and a discussion with your doctor.

maf9866

Ah! Sorry I couldn't remember @Kaytee1087! But I did remember that yours was severe. It is good in the discussion to see the range from just barely there to really there. 

Liz622

@moquat I could have written your first post almost word for word.  I was just diagnosed this week as well, 34 weeks and also a teacher.  The goal is to get to 37 weeks, I was also told no bed rest but no work and take it easy.  My blood pressure has been borderline for awhile but seems to be slowly rising.  I did a 24 hour urine test in the beginning of June as a baseline that came back higher than normal but not above the 300 preeclampsia number.  I did the 24 urine again last week and found out a few days ago it was 395.  My dr said its mild pree but they are having me do the twice weekly NST and BPP (Sonos).  Baby is looking good so far but the whole diagnosis is a bit scary/ overwhelming.  Have they mentioned anything about blood pressure medication to anyone diagnosed? 

maf9866

@Liz622 I don't think they suggest any of the blood pressure medicine but I see MFM because I had it last pregnancy so their suggestion to me was a baby aspirin everyday. They said the benefits outweigh the risks in that case. I can't say if it works because my dh and I decided that since I've had low bp readings I should hold off and start if they got any higher. They haven't the entire pregnancy so I haven't taken any, but it may be something to ask your dr if you are looking at medicine. 

Liz622

@maf9866 Good to know.  I am seeing an MFM now as well but she didn't mention anything about medication either.  But my regular OB actually asked me if the MFM mentioned anything about medication.  

moquat

Top! Just checking in to see how other pre-e mamas are doing. Thanks for sharing your stories, it helps to not feel so alone! Kaytee1087 I can only imagine the extreme fail that would be my husband packing my hospital bag... Liz622 I was in the middle of 2 weeks of PD before school... thinking maybe that's why my pressures were high?? 
 
Just got back from an NST. Baby looks great though he was avoiding the monitor like the plague. As for me: after 2 weeks of not working and taking it easy (albeit through a kitchen renovation with an extremely sped up timeline due to this baby dropping 3 weeks earlier than expected!) my BP and urine were both totally normal. I asked the OB on call if there was any chance that I could push off delivery, he basically said nope. Not worth the risk of the pre-e suddenly getting worse when baby's lungs are probably ready for prime time, though he did say that it was a relatively new standard of care to induce at 37 weeks for pre-e (within the last 2 years).

And we have an induction date! Going into the hospital in exactly 1 week. 

How is everyone else doing??

jennielu

@moquat Great news all around. Too bad they won't let you push back the induction but awesome you have a date! That's ridiculously soon! 

I also passed our first NST today AND my BP was still down. No induction scheduled yet. I'm hoping for 39 weeks but that's me being optimistic  

mommathoner

I posted on the previous thread, but I'll add my experience again if anyone new is reading ... I had borderline high BP my entire first pregnancy and started to have trace protein around 28 weeks. I kinda stumped my doc though because I had no other signs of trouble. She had me go for NSTs twice a week to monitor the baby, but otherwise I had no restrictions and made it to 39 weeks before my BP shot up too high and I had to be induced for risk of stroke ... my cervix didn't want to play nice, so I ended up with a c-section, but all was good with me and baby in the end.

So I guess my takeaway is to NOT freak out because it IS possible to get to the end with signs of pre-e ... NSTs and other frequent monitoring can be a giant pain in the ass after a while, but it is good to keep a close eye on things because they can change quickly. 

As for this pregnancy, my doc said the chance of pre-e declines significantly after baby #1. However, he recommended starting a baby aspirin regime before we even started TTC, so I've been on that ever since. He said it was safe for me and baby, however, I would discuss it with your doctor before starting something new this late in the game. 

Liz622

Funny enough today is my first day back checking out the bump (or checking out much of anything!) in a few days.  First things first!- I delivered my son via csection on Friday at 35 weeks + 1 day.  I went to my Nst/BPP appointment on Thursday at ob office.  Both tests were great but pressure was high so he sent me straight to the hospital.  They did a bunch of tests, etc and started the process of induction Thursday night.  After 12 hours of cervadil (no progress) and about 8 hours of pitocin (increasing every half hour) there was still zero change.  My doctor suggested a csection which I agreed with and at 5:45pm Christopher was born!  He is in the NICU intermediate room and doing really well in an open crib.  I am in the hospital still as my blood pressure is high again (it went down for about 2 days after baby) but leaving tonight.  Christopher will be here a little bit longer but it's really a day by day process.  I could write a book about all I have been through in the past few days and all I have learned but I have no energy for that now!! Good luck to all other pree mamas.  While it's scary, it is all worth it and it is important to be on top of. 

jennielu

Wow @Liz622 Congrats and keep us posted! Did you put your birth announcement up yet? The other O16 ladies would love to see it! Hope all goes well with you and Christopher.

@mommathoner thanks for sharing your experiences! 

AColeman82

I had preeclampsia with my previous pregnancy.  They induced me at 36 weeks...the protein in my urine was at 11,000 and my BP was out of control. I ended up having a c-section and was on mag afterwards. It was rough and scary...but all turned out good in the end. I was pretty out of it for 2 days with the mag, but ds was perfect and spent  no time in nicu. I definitely agree with pp though, make sure you stay on top of your appointments and your different Dr's to make sure they are communicating with each other. The week I was induced l had one Dr trying to a do a 3rd BP med and another Dr saying no I don't want you on another med....I ended up having to have my delivering Dr call and talk to everyone and make the final decision. 

BluMommy

Thanks y'all for posting this thread! While I haven't been officially diagnosed yet,(Dr. Office screwed up last thursday) my ob is pretty confident I have pre-e. Between swelling, weight gain (12lbs in less than 6 weeks) and high BP, it looks grim and I have been borderline flipping $#!@ for almost a week. Did the 24 hour collection and had blood drawn yesterday, so, fingers crossed that results will be in for appt tomorrow.

UponAStar16

Oh wow @Liz622, congratulations!!! Hoping both of you are better soon! 

In terms of meds people mentioned, I'm clueless about the BP meds but was taking baby aspirin since the beginning of this pregnancy and my dr just stopped that this week, but it was supposed to help the placenta's blood flow or something that they think relates to what causes pre-e. I know it sounds like duh and maybe I have worried P brain, but just wanted to reach out and say definitely check with your doctors and don't start taking it unless they say, even if it sounds like it could prevent pre-e, because they usually want you on it earlier and off any blood thinners whatever amount of time before potentially giving birth. Hoping everyone is hanging in here  

Liz622

I am up pumping now so we can bring breastmilk to hospital for feedings when I am not there.  So here is a little more of an update.  I actually didn't leave the hospital the night I thought I would.  I was put on two blood pressure medications (labetol and procardia) to lower my pressures before being discharged on Wednesday. I really thought my pressures were high because I was stressed/baby was in NiCU etc.  Dr kept telling me it's not my fault and not anything I could control. Dr also said she believes the pressures are still pregnancy related even though the pregnancy is over.  Some people take a few weeks to a few months to return to "normal".  They will continue to monitor me.

As someone else posted I was also put on the dreaded magnesium IV while in the hospital.  They continued the magnesium IV for 24 hours after delivery to prevent seizures (that is what "eclampsia" is).  I initially was diagnosed with mild preeclampsia at 34 weeks or so but when I was admitted to hospital at 35 weeks it was changed to the severe range.  So if you continue to have "mild pree" I would assume you could wait for 37 weeks to deliver and wouldn't need the magnesium.  The magnesium puts you in a giant fog and you feel drunk/high.

Baby is doing amazing and as long as everything stays the same he will be coming home on Saturday!!  We took a little bit to get him to breastfeed well but the past two days he has done a wonderful job. A few days ago he had an issue with his heart rate dropping while feeding with one of the nurses.  Their policy is to monitor baby for 5 days after that event to confirm it doesn't happen again.  They completed a car seat challenge on him today that he also passed.  (They put baby in car seat for 90 minutes and monitor his breathing, etc.  This seems like a common/mandatory test for babies in NICU).   

Other notes- I never had really any swelling, and pretty much no headaches.  Those are other pree symptoms.  I had high pressures (they kept slowly climbing) and protein in urine after 24 hour urine collection.  But I never had protein in urine during quick office checks.  I have my own blood pressure cuff at home that I used to check pressures myself.

I hope that answers some questions and gives a little more background.  Let me know if I can help with other questions. I will try to check back in.