What Causes Preeclampsia and Eclampsia?
The causes of preeclampsia and eclampsia remain unknown, but there are theories. Growing evidence suggests that women with preeclampsia have abnormal placentas that cause damage to the mother’s vascular endothelial tissue (the tissue that lines blood vessels). Endothelial cell dysfunction may trigger the symptoms that develop in preeclampsia. Presumably, as blood pressure rises due to preeclampsia, the blood vessels in the brain increase their resistance, sometimes in spasms. As you develop eclampsia and seizures, your resistance drops, and your brain’s system for regulating blood pressure shifts out of balance. This can cause extra-high blood pressure in the brain, edema (swelling) and hemorrhage (bleeding). Endothelial Damage and Hypertension Current research suggests that preeclampsia arises from poor oxygen flow to the placenta due to problems with the development of the placenta. As a result, the diseased placenta then releases factors such as sFlt1 (a protein that causes damage t
