A rose by any other name...
Historically, it didn't take long for folks to realize that there were certain conditions unique to pregnancy. What got their attention was death, which seemed to be an accepted hazard of trying to reproduce. There were two main mortal conditions associated with childbirth-related death. One was hemorrhage. The other was something that was called toxemia, described as far back as four thousand years ago.
Toxemia, so called because it was supposed that toxins of some sort, bad "humors," caused this condition, was associated with seizures, swelling, and death anywere from the beginning of the third trimester to a month or so beyond delivery. As science gloated over discoveries like blood types and blood pressure differences, the voodoo term "toxemia" was renamed "pre-eclampsia", "eclapmsia" a condition of seizures that were the result of the worst type of swelling one could have--brain swelling. But "pre-"eclampsia was a bit of a downer term, because implied within it was the observation, "You haven't had your seizure...yet!"
Next, the label was corrected to "Pregnancny-Induced Hypertension" ("PIH"), to associate it with the uniqueness of pregnancy. But this term singled out only one aspect, the elevated blood pressure. This was a faulty term, because it was possible to have PIH and its sinister big sister, HELLP syndrome, without even having an elevation in blood pressure. Today, the term du jour is Gestational Hypertension...still not perfect, but we all know what we're talking about here: a multifactorial condition, involving some sort of immune response to pregnancy. After all, there's foreign material (the father's genetic component) trying to graft to the mother, with varying intensities of rejection. These "varying intensities" probably are responsible for the numerous ways it presents in different pregnant women, which has been the difficulty in nailing down one "Grand Unification Theory" of its cause. In fact, there's an empty plaque at Chicago's famous Lying-in Hospital waiting for the engraved name of the person who discoveres the cause. This plaque may remain empty forever, as the "cause" may run the gamut of immunology, host-graft science, embryology, perinatology, chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology, and a host of other biological and physical sciences.* There may be thousands of researchers that would have be included on a very, very large plaque.
Epid - Low levels of omega-3s associated with preeclampsia |
Williams MA, Zingheim RW, King IB, Zebelman AM; Omega-3 fatty acids in maternal erythrocytes and risk of preeclampsia; Epidemiology 1995;6(3):232-237. |
Preeclampsia is a systemic disease characterized by diffuse endothelial dysfunction, increased peripheral vascular resistance, coagulation abnormalities, antioxidant deficiency, persistent elevations of maternal leukocyte-derived cytokines, and hyperlipidemia. |
Stretching Exercises May Reduce Risk Of Pre-Eclampsia During Pregnancy
ScienceDaily (June 3, 2008) — Stretching exercises may be more effective at reducing the risk of preeclampsia than walking is for pregnant women who have already experienced the condition and who do not follow a workout routine, according to researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing.
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Preeclampsia, or pregnancy-induced hypertension, is a condition that affects up to 8 percent of pregnancies every year and is among the leading causes of maternal and fetal illness and death worldwide.
The finding is contrary to existing studies and literature that suggest that rigorous exercise is the most effective way to reduce the risk of preeclampsia, said SeonAe Yeo, Ph.D., an associate professor with a specialty in women's health at the UNC School of Nursing and the study's lead researcher.
Yeo will present the findings May 29 at the annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine in Indianapolis, Ind. The results will be published in the spring issue of the journal Hypertension in Pregnancy.
Preeclampsia is characterized by a marked increase in blood pressure during pregnancy and may be accompanied by swelling and kidney problems. It is diagnosed when blood pressure readings taken twice in six hours read 140/90 or higher.
"These results seemingly contradict the conventional wisdom that walking is the best protection pregnant women have against developing preeclampsia," Yeo said. "But for women who were not physically active before becoming pregnant and who have experienced preeclampsia with a previous pregnancy, that might not be the case."
From November 2001 to July 2006, 79 women with a previous preeclampsia diagnosis and a sedentary lifestyle participated in this National Institute of Nursing Research-funded study. Women were randomly assigned to either the walking group (41 women) or the stretching group (38 women) during the 18th week of pregnancy.
The walking group was asked to exercise for 40 minutes five times a week at moderate intensity, following the program recommended by the Surgeon General and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Stretchers were also asked to perform slow, non-aerobic muscle movements with a 40-minute video fives times a week. Frequency and duration of exercise decreased in both groups as the pregnancy progressed.
At the end of pregnancy, almost 15 percent of women in the walking group had developed preeclampsia. Less than 5 percent of the stretching group developed the condition. While the incidence of preeclampsia in the walking group was similar to that reported in high-risk pregnancies, the frequency among the stretching group was similar to rates seen among the general population.
"Clearly, walking does not have a harmful effect during pregnancy," Yeo said. "But for women who are at high risk for preeclampsia, our results may suggest that stretching exercises may have a protective effect against the condition."
Stretching could provide protection against preeclampsia because stretchers produced more transferrin than walkers did, Yeo said. Transferrin is a plasma protein that transports iron through the blood and protects against oxidative stress on the body.
Yeo said these results could help prenatal care providers recommend different exercise plans based on an individual pregnant woman's needs and abilities. Following an active exercise plan is good, she said, but only if a pregnant woman is truly able to do it. For some who already have a risk of preeclampsia, stretching might be a better option.
Co-authors of the study include Sandra Davidge, Ph.D., University of Alberta; David L. Ronis, Ph.D., University of Michigan School of Nursing and Veterans Administration Hospital in Ann Arbor, Mich.; Cathy L. Antonakos, Ph.D., University of Michigan School of Nursing; Robert Hayashi, M.D., University of Michigan School of Medicine; and Sharon O'Leary, M.D., St. Joseph Mercy Health Systems, Ypsilanti, Mich.
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The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
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