Preeclampsia Expert?

[Anonymous]

Preeclampsia is caused by the placenta which is new every single pregnancy. No doctor will be able to tell you whether you’ll get it in the future. There is no magic equation for them to punch to read a crystal ball.

Anecdotally, I got it with my first and not my subsequent ones, same with two friends of mine. I took baby aspirin in all.

IMO it’s a poor reason to not have future children if you want them. Maternal or infant mortality from preeclampsia is less than being killed in a car accident.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Preeclampsia is caused by the placenta which is new every single pregnancy. No doctor will be able to tell you whether you’ll get it in the future. There is no magic equation for them to punch to read a crystal ball.

Anecdotally, I got it with my first and not my subsequent ones, same with two friends of mine. I took baby aspirin in all.

IMO it’s a poor reason to not have future children if you want them. Maternal or infant mortality from preeclampsia is less than being killed in a car accident.

No one knows what causes pre-e. I am the pp who had two additional children after severe pre-e/HELLP but I think this post is pretty insensitive. The reality is its a bit of a mystery. The facts say you ARE more likely to get it. And it is true that it is a life threatening condition.

It is also true that when heavily monitored it is far less likely that anything serious happens or that you die. But, for example, I had reduced function in my kidneys after my three recurrent preeclamptic pregnancies. My creatinine was weird for years and I had to see a nephrologist to ensure it wasn't chronic kidney disease. It has stabilized so they believe I essentially have a kidney that was injured and will never be quite the same. But also won't get worse. Anyway, I'm just saying that your fear is reasonable, and that there is no need to downplay the stress and anxiety of a complicated pregnancy. I clearly chose to go forward knowing the risks but it would be perfectly rational to not do that.

I will say to you and all pp's reading this that preeclampsia does not CAUSE heart issues later in life but is an unmasker for risk/proclivity towards heart disease. This doesn't increase with additional episodes of pre-e because again the episodes don't cause the heart issues, but it does mean that just generally you, OP, should be aware of your heart health and increased risk towards heart disease unmasked by this pregnancy, regardless of whether you decide to have more children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Preeclampsia is caused by the placenta which is new every single pregnancy. No doctor will be able to tell you whether you’ll get it in the future. There is no magic equation for them to punch to read a crystal ball.

Anecdotally, I got it with my first and not my subsequent ones, same with two friends of mine. I took baby aspirin in all.

IMO it’s a poor reason to not have future children if you want them. Maternal or infant mortality from preeclampsia is less than being killed in a car accident.

No one knows what causes pre-e. I am the pp who had two additional children after severe pre-e/HELLP but I think this post is pretty insensitive. The reality is its a bit of a mystery. The facts say you ARE more likely to get it. And it is true that it is a life threatening condition.

It is also true that when heavily monitored it is far less likely that anything serious happens or that you die. But, for example, I had reduced function in my kidneys after my three recurrent preeclamptic pregnancies. My creatinine was weird for years and I had to see a nephrologist to ensure it wasn't chronic kidney disease. It has stabilized so they believe I essentially have a kidney that was injured and will never be quite the same. But also won't get worse. Anyway, I'm just saying that your fear is reasonable, and that there is no need to downplay the stress and anxiety of a complicated pregnancy. I clearly chose to go forward knowing the risks but it would be perfectly rational to not do that.

I will say to you and all pp's reading this that preeclampsia does not CAUSE heart issues later in life but is an unmasker for risk/proclivity towards heart disease. This doesn't increase with additional episodes of pre-e because again the episodes don't cause the heart issues, but it does mean that just generally you, OP, should be aware of your heart health and increased risk towards heart disease unmasked by this pregnancy, regardless of whether you decide to have more children.

.

I mean…you’re just flat out wrong. On all accounts, actually. Impressive.


First sentence of a study published over a decade ago (and has been proven true time and time again): “The root cause of preeclampsia is the placenta.”
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3381433/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Preeclampsia is caused by the placenta which is new every single pregnancy. No doctor will be able to tell you whether you’ll get it in the future. There is no magic equation for them to punch to read a crystal ball.

Anecdotally, I got it with my first and not my subsequent ones, same with two friends of mine. I took baby aspirin in all.

IMO it’s a poor reason to not have future children if you want them. Maternal or infant mortality from preeclampsia is less than being killed in a car accident.

No one knows what causes pre-e. I am the pp who had two additional children after severe pre-e/HELLP but I think this post is pretty insensitive. The reality is its a bit of a mystery. The facts say you ARE more likely to get it. And it is true that it is a life threatening condition.

It is also true that when heavily monitored it is far less likely that anything serious happens or that you die. But, for example, I had reduced function in my kidneys after my three recurrent preeclamptic pregnancies. My creatinine was weird for years and I had to see a nephrologist to ensure it wasn't chronic kidney disease. It has stabilized so they believe I essentially have a kidney that was injured and will never be quite the same. But also won't get worse. Anyway, I'm just saying that your fear is reasonable, and that there is no need to downplay the stress and anxiety of a complicated pregnancy. I clearly chose to go forward knowing the risks but it would be perfectly rational to not do that.

I will say to you and all pp's reading this that preeclampsia does not CAUSE heart issues later in life but is an unmasker for risk/proclivity towards heart disease. This doesn't increase with additional episodes of pre-e because again the episodes don't cause the heart issues, but it does mean that just generally you, OP, should be aware of your heart health and increased risk towards heart disease unmasked by this pregnancy, regardless of whether you decide to have more children.

.

I mean…you’re just flat out wrong. On all accounts, actually. Impressive.


First sentence of a study published over a decade ago (and has been proven true time and time again): “The root cause of preeclampsia is the placenta.”
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3381433/

Oy. Sorry but you are not showing a lot of scientific literacy. According to your logic, placentas cause pre-eclampsia, end of story. But then why wouldn’t everyone with a placenta get pre-eclampsia? Well, because there are complex factors, and not all are known. Otherwise we’d be able to clearly predict exactly who will and won’t get pre-e, and unfortunately we can’t. Please check yourself because you’re spreading BS conclusions regarding a serious matter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Preeclampsia is caused by the placenta which is new every single pregnancy. No doctor will be able to tell you whether you’ll get it in the future. There is no magic equation for them to punch to read a crystal ball.

Anecdotally, I got it with my first and not my subsequent ones, same with two friends of mine. I took baby aspirin in all.

IMO it’s a poor reason to not have future children if you want them. Maternal or infant mortality from preeclampsia is less than being killed in a car accident.

Pre-eclampsia often causes highly premature births that can cause long NICU stays and even have lifetime consequences for the child. I can understand why someone would take this decision very seriously.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Preeclampsia is caused by the placenta which is new every single pregnancy. No doctor will be able to tell you whether you’ll get it in the future. There is no magic equation for them to punch to read a crystal ball.

Anecdotally, I got it with my first and not my subsequent ones, same with two friends of mine. I took baby aspirin in all.

IMO it’s a poor reason to not have future children if you want them. Maternal or infant mortality from preeclampsia is less than being killed in a car accident.

No one knows what causes pre-e. I am the pp who had two additional children after severe pre-e/HELLP but I think this post is pretty insensitive. The reality is its a bit of a mystery. The facts say you ARE more likely to get it. And it is true that it is a life threatening condition.

It is also true that when heavily monitored it is far less likely that anything serious happens or that you die. But, for example, I had reduced function in my kidneys after my three recurrent preeclamptic pregnancies. My creatinine was weird for years and I had to see a nephrologist to ensure it wasn't chronic kidney disease. It has stabilized so they believe I essentially have a kidney that was injured and will never be quite the same. But also won't get worse. Anyway, I'm just saying that your fear is reasonable, and that there is no need to downplay the stress and anxiety of a complicated pregnancy. I clearly chose to go forward knowing the risks but it would be perfectly rational to not do that.

I will say to you and all pp's reading this that preeclampsia does not CAUSE heart issues later in life but is an unmasker for risk/proclivity towards heart disease. This doesn't increase with additional episodes of pre-e because again the episodes don't cause the heart issues, but it does mean that just generally you, OP, should be aware of your heart health and increased risk towards heart disease unmasked by this pregnancy, regardless of whether you decide to have more children.

The nuanced response here is the right one. I’m the poster that recommended Dr Sharma. This post is spot on- nobody really knows what causes preeclampsia and you do take a risk with any pregnancy but in particular with a subsequent one where you’ve had it previously. I had postpartum preeclampsia and it was very scary. I will likely not have another child in large part because of this experience. It would likely be closely monitored and ok the next time around, I just don’t think I have the appetite to go through it again. But that’s just me. Everyone’s individual calculus is very specific because every circumstance and person is different. The poster’s opinion on what is a good or bad reason not to have another kid is irrelevant. OP-you’re the one carrying the child and the risk, and who will live in your body going forward. Most doctors will tell you that preeclampsia is possible or likely to recur but is potentially or likely manageable, and at the end of the day, it’s probably going to be up to you to decide what to do with that information.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Preeclampsia is caused by the placenta which is new every single pregnancy. No doctor will be able to tell you whether you’ll get it in the future. There is no magic equation for them to punch to read a crystal ball.

Anecdotally, I got it with my first and not my subsequent ones, same with two friends of mine. I took baby aspirin in all.

IMO it’s a poor reason to not have future children if you want them. Maternal or infant mortality from preeclampsia is less than being killed in a car accident.

No one knows what causes pre-e. I am the pp who had two additional children after severe pre-e/HELLP but I think this post is pretty insensitive. The reality is its a bit of a mystery. The facts say you ARE more likely to get it. And it is true that it is a life threatening condition.

It is also true that when heavily monitored it is far less likely that anything serious happens or that you die. But, for example, I had reduced function in my kidneys after my three recurrent preeclamptic pregnancies. My creatinine was weird for years and I had to see a nephrologist to ensure it wasn't chronic kidney disease. It has stabilized so they believe I essentially have a kidney that was injured and will never be quite the same. But also won't get worse. Anyway, I'm just saying that your fear is reasonable, and that there is no need to downplay the stress and anxiety of a complicated pregnancy. I clearly chose to go forward knowing the risks but it would be perfectly rational to not do that.

I will say to you and all pp's reading this that preeclampsia does not CAUSE heart issues later in life but is an unmasker for risk/proclivity towards heart disease. This doesn't increase with additional episodes of pre-e because again the episodes don't cause the heart issues, but it does mean that just generally you, OP, should be aware of your heart health and increased risk towards heart disease unmasked by this pregnancy, regardless of whether you decide to have more children.

The nuanced response here is the right one. I’m the poster that recommended Dr Sharma. This post is spot on- nobody really knows what causes preeclampsia and you do take a risk with any pregnancy but in particular with a subsequent one where you’ve had it previously. I had postpartum preeclampsia and it was very scary. I will likely not have another child in large part because of this experience. It would likely be closely monitored and ok the next time around, I just don’t think I have the appetite to go through it again. But that’s just me. Everyone’s individual calculus is very specific because every circumstance and person is different. The poster’s opinion on what is a good or bad reason not to have another kid is irrelevant. OP-you’re the one carrying the child and the risk, and who will live in your body going forward. Most doctors will tell you that preeclampsia is possible or likely to recur but is potentially or likely manageable, and at the end of the day, it’s probably going to be up to you to decide what to do with that information.

+1 to both of these thoughtful posts

[Anonymous]

Hey, OP. Like others have said, an MFM is the kind of doc you want to talk to. I had HELLP with my first and saw the GW MFMs for my second and third babies. My favorite doc was Dr Phillips, but any MFM would be qualified to give you a good preconception consult.

That said, when I called to do mine several years ago, the wait for such a thing was like 6 months. Definitely call now if this is something you want to do.

[Anonymous]

these are ACOG practice bulletins you may find helpful. some of them do mention risk of pre-e and related disorders:

acog management of pre-eclampsia
https://emcrit.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/[e-mail]

medically indicated late preterm and early term deliviers
https://www.acog.org/-/media/project/acog/acogorg/clinical/files/committee-opinion/articles/2021/07/medically-indicated-late-preterm-and-early-term-deliveries.pdf

management of pregnancy at age 35 and older
https://assets.noviams.com/novi-file-uploads/smfm/Publications_and_Guidelines/ACOG_SMFM_OCC__11_Pregnancy_at_age_35_years_or_older.pdf

[Anonymous]

Fwiw I had severe preeclampsia with my first, onset 35.5 weeks. I asked my doctor if I would be able to have another kid and she was genuinely surprised that I expected to be counseled against it. I asked about seeing a specialist and was told that pre e doesn’t usually push you to an MFM. That all might be different for you since yours was earlier but that was my experience. Pre E is just very common, esp in first pregnancies, and there isn’t all that much you can do to prevent it (outside of aspirin, which you don’t need an MFM to tell you.)

Anecdotally I did get it the second time, also severe, and a little earlier (34 weeks) but I have underlying hypertension that puts me at higher risk. With the second one I had an extra layer of vigilance and it all felt much less chaotic, I got steroid shots and my kid (born at 36 weeks) was much more robust, larger, and healthier than my first.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

I’d seek a MFM.

I developed preeclampsia with severe features with my 2022 baby and had him at 34+3 for my health.

Just had baby #2 in early September and had to deliver her at 35+0 due to developing preeclampsia again (although not with severe features this time). I thought I was going to be in the clear with this pregnancy too because my pregnancy was complication free up until my 35 week appt where out of no where my blood pressure was through the roof (185/95 in the appt).

[Anonymous]

Studies have shown that preeclampsia in pregnancy puts women at a higher risk for early onset heart disease. OBs are reluctant to incorporate this research into their practice but women need to be made aware and followed by a cardiologist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Studies have shown that preeclampsia in pregnancy puts women at a higher risk for early onset heart disease. OBs are reluctant to incorporate this research into their practice but women need to be made aware and followed by a cardiologist.

No it has been shown to be an unmasker for heart disease risk but not a cause of the risk in and of itself. Which is a very important distinction in the calculus for choosing to become pregnant again with a higher predisposition towards pre-e.

[Anonymous]

I had pre-e with #1.

I then had two miscarriages.

I did acupuncture to get and stay pregnant again and then I continued with acupuncture during the subsequent pregnancy.

No pre-e and my son is now 17.

Good luck

[Anonymous]

You want an MFM.