Gestosis is called one of the most dangerous complications that occurs during pregnancy and passes after childbirth. This serious disease is one of the top three main causes of death for expectant mothers and is diagnosed in almost 30% of pregnant women.
Gestosis during pregnancy is often called late toxicosis and, as a rule, is detected in the 3rd trimester. It can be accompanied by dysfunction of any vital organs, however, most often, the vascular system suffers.
The placenta of pregnant women with gestosis begins to produce special substances that provoke the formation of micropores on the walls of blood vessels.
Thanks to them, fluid and plasma protein penetrate into the tissues of the body. It causes severe swelling. Since the vessels of the kidneys also pass protein, it is easily detected by a general urine test. Timely delivery of tests allows you to detect gestosis in the early stages of development, which greatly facilitates its treatment.
Gestosis of the second half of pregnancy is a very insidious disease, in which a pregnant woman can feel completely healthy for a long time. Gestosis can be suspected by rapid weight gain in the 3rd trimester, which arose as a result of latent edema of internal organs, including the placenta, which can cause fetal hypoxia.
OCG – preeclampsia, and this is what they often call late toxicosis of pregnant women, got its name thanks to a triad of characteristic signs: edema, proteinuria and hypertension. Moreover, it is not necessary at all that all these signs of the disease will be detected. Sometimes gestosis proceeds to a mild degree and is characterized by the presence of one or two symptoms.
The main types and severity of gestosis in pregnant women
Gestosis of the second half of pregnancy can develop in the complete absence of any serious pathologies, against the background of a completely safe condition of the pregnant woman. This condition is called “pure” gestosis. But more often gestosis occurs against the background of existing chronic ailments, for example, in violation of fat metabolism, pathology of the endocrine system, hypertension, kidney and liver diseases. Doctors call such a disease “combined” gestosis.
Gestosis in the 3rd trimester can manifest in a different form and have different causes, symptoms and consequences.
Specialists distinguish several types of gestosis, which can become the stage or severity of this disease.
- Dropsy of pregnant women is the simplest and earliest stage of gestosis in the 3rd trimester, which is characterized by swelling of the legs and hands. Moreover, the presence of swelling does not always indicate the presence of the disease. The diagnosis of OCG-gestosis can only be made by a qualified specialist based on a preliminary examination and laboratory research methods. Having discovered the characteristic symptoms of mild gestosis, pregnant women should not draw premature conclusions and even more so take any actions aimed at self-medication.
- Nephropathy is one of the stages of gestosis that develops against the background of dropsy of pregnant women and is accompanied by impaired renal function. The main sign of this condition is a sharp increase in blood pressure. Treatment for nephropathy should be immediate, since this condition can quickly switch to another form of gestosis – eclampsia, the consequences of which can be dangerous for the life and health of pregnant women.
- Preeclampsia is a later stage of preeclampsia with serious symptoms such as edema, high blood pressure, protein in urine tests. Moreover, with such a degree of gestosis, there is often a violation of the blood supply, provoking the appearance of nausea, vomiting, severe headaches and a feeling of heaviness in the back of the head. Late gestosis can negatively affect the eyesight of pregnant women, as well as cause serious mental disorders. Read more about preeclampsia →
- Eclampsia is one of the most severe stages of gestosis during the second half of pregnancy. The consequences of this degree of the disease are very dangerous, both for the expectant mother and for the baby. Late gestosis is often accompanied by convulsive attacks that can cause premature birth, bleeding, fetal hypoxia, and as a result, cause the death of a woman and her unborn child. Moreover, such an attack can provoke pulmonary and cerebral edema, stroke and heart attack, detachment of the placenta and retina, the development of liver or renal failure.
How to recognize a dangerous ailment?
Every pregnant woman should know all the symptoms of gestosis in order to recognize a dangerous illness as soon as possible. What should alert the expectant mother?
- The presence of late toxicosis, manifested in the form of nausea, vomiting and dizziness. Such signs of the disease are usually accompanied by excessive salivation and can be disturbing at any time of the day.
- The appearance of protein in the general analysis of urine. This type of study is prescribed to pregnant women regularly until birth and allows you to recognize gestosis on time.
- High blood pressure. Due to fluid loss, the blood in the body of a pregnant woman thickens, it becomes more difficult to move it through the vessels and this increases the pressure.
- The appearance of edema and a sharp increase in weight.
Treatment of gestosis in pregnant women
Gestosis in all its manifestations is extremely dangerous. Suspecting any signs of this disease, you should immediately tell your doctor about them. This will allow you to start timely treatment and prevent serious irreversible consequences.
Odd-gestosis is incurable and it is possible to get rid of it only after childbirth. However, it is quite possible to significantly alleviate the condition of a pregnant woman in the 3rd trimester. With a mild degree of the disease, treatment can occur at home, with a more severe one, in a hospital, in the immediate vicinity of the intensive care unit. The duration of inpatient treatment is largely determined by the severity of the disease. In the presence of small edema, it can be a week, with a more serious steppe – up to 2-3 weeks. Since pregnancy itself, or rather the placenta of a pregnant woman, is the main cause of gestosis, the best treatment is natural delivery.
In the presence of indications of the future mother, one should not refuse hospitalization. There, in any emergency, she will be able to receive qualified medical care and undergo a course of treatment that will significantly improve her condition. With the help of droppers, doctors will quickly make up for the loss of fluid and protein in the blood vessels and normalize the health of the woman.
To confirm the diagnosis and establish the form of gestosis, the expectant mother will have to undergo a thorough examination. It will be possible to breathe a sigh of relief only after childbirth, because until the end of pregnancy she will have to adhere to a special diet with a restriction of salt and liquid to 1000 ml per day. At any degree of gestosis in the 3rd trimester, it is necessary to control the accumulation of fluid in the body, as well as constantly monitor the dynamics of weight gain.
After confirming the diagnosis of “gestosis of the second half of pregnancy”, the woman will need to undergo such a study as dopplerometry of the fetus, as well as get advice from a therapist, neurologist, oculist and nephrologist.
Drug treatment of toxicosis of the second half of pregnancy depends on a violation of the functions of the internal organs. The causes and symptoms of gestosis during pregnancy in different women may vary, so all medications are prescribed individually. It can be diuretics or drugs that lower blood pressure and improve blood flow in small vessels.
Treatment of gestosis in pregnant women does not do without sedatives. Mild symptoms of the disease are the reason for the appointment of valerian or tincture of motherwort, with the development of eclampsia, more powerful sedatives are used. At the same time, prevention of placental insufficiency is being carried out. For this, the drug Actovegin and a number of vitamins are prescribed, which will have to be taken in the second half of pregnancy until the birth itself.
Odd-gestosis is a rather complex disease, the signs of which may be sluggish. However, most often gestosis of the second half of pregnancy is characterized by rapid development with a sharp deterioration in the condition of pregnant women.
In the case of the slightest suspicion of gestosis in the 3rd trimester, you should immediately seek qualified help. Self-treatment in this case is unacceptable, since gestosis can lead to the rapid development of a wide variety of complications with very sad consequences. In exceptional cases, when the prescribed treatment does not bring the slightest relief, and the condition of the expectant mother and her child worsens, doctors may decide to stimulate preterm delivery or have a cesarean section.
How to resist an insidious disease?
Prevention of such an ailment as gestosis of the second half of pregnancy should be of interest, first of all, to women included in the so-called risk group:
- pregnant women over the age of 35;
- primiparous or having a multiple pregnancy;
- carriers of sexually transmitted infections (mycoplasmosis, chlamydia, ureaplasma, etc.);
- pregnant women suffering from chronic diseases (diabetes mellitus, obesity, hypertension, pyelonephritis, vegetovascular dystonia, etc.).
To prevent preeclampsia, from the first months of pregnancy until birth, women should carefully monitor their nutrition and their own weight. The expectant mother needs good nutrition, the basis of which should be food enriched with protein: eggs, cottage cheese, fish, lean meats and so on. You should not get involved in pickles, sweet and flour dishes. It is better to give preference to fresh fruits and vegetables, which are enriched in fiber and are the best way to prevent constipation.
Prevention of gestosis of varying severity should include an active lifestyle and moderate physical activity. To do this, you can go to the pool, do yoga or take daily walks.
Sometimes it is quite difficult to identify the main causes of gestosis. Preeclampsia can occur due to compression of the ureters with a uterus, increasing in size. In this case, in order to restore impaired outflow of urine, doctors recommend expectant mothers to take an elbow-elbow pose daily for 10 minutes.
With a tendency to edema, the prevention of gestosis can not do without drugs that have a weak diuretic effect. For this, broths of leaves of lingonberry, rosehip, bearberry, as well as berry fruit drinks and kidney teas are perfect. Special anti-edematous collection is available at the pharmacy. However, one should pay attention so that it does not contain a woolly erva that can destroy tooth enamel, kidney stones and liver.
Herbal teas against edema can be an excellent alternative to herbal preparations such as cystenal, kanefron, ciston, etc. Treatment and prevention of edema can be carried out with the help of drugs: Magne-B6, Magnerot, vitamin E, lipoic acid, hofitol or chimes.