Researchers have discovered that women who acquire urine infections during pregnancy are at increased risk of pre-eclampsia, a life threatening condition that affects 5% of pregnancies and for which the cause is still unknown.
BRC-supported Dr David Williams from the UCL Institute for Women’s Health, and a team from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) studied the association between acute maternal infection and pre- eclampsia. In particular they looked at urinary tract infection, respiratory tract infection and antibiotic drug prescriptions in pregnancy (a proxy for maternal infection).
Signs of pre-eclampsia include the onset of high blood pressure (hypertension) and protein in urine during the second half of pregnancy. It is unlikely pregnant women notice these signs. In some cases symptoms develop, including: swelling of the face and hands due to fluid retention, severe headaches and visual disturbances. Pre-eclampsia becomes eclampsia when the mother has a seizure. At present, the only way to cure pre-eclampsia is to deliver the baby.
Over 1,500 cases of pre-eclampsia in first time pregnant mothers were identified from the UK GP Research Database and compared with a random sample of over 14,000 first-time mothers who did not develop pre-eclampsia. To enable a fair comparison, suitable adjustments were made for maternal age, pre-gestational hypertension, diabetes, renal disease and those pregnant with more than one baby.
The study, published in PLOS One, found that the risk of pre-eclampsia was increased in women who had a urinary tract infection, even if it occurred in the first half of pregnancy. Pregnant women who required a prescription for antibiotics were also at increased risk of pre-eclampsia, but not those who developed a respiratory tract infection.
The team stated that further research is required to reveal the underlying mechanism of these associations and to determine whether, among women who acquire infections in pregnancy, prompt treatment of or prevention against infection might reduce the risk of pre-eclampsia.
To read the paper ‘Acute Maternal Infection and Risk of Pre-Eclampsia: A Population-Based Case-Control Study’ in full click here.
