Temporizing management vs immediate delivery in early-onset severe preeclampsia between 28 and 34 weeks of gestation (TOTEM study): An open-label randomized controlled trial.

INTRODUCTION: There is little evidence to guide the timing of delivery of women with early-onset severe preeclampsia. We hypothesize that immediate delivery is not inferior for neonatal outcome but reduces maternal complications compared with temporizing management. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This Dutch multicenter open-label randomized clinical trial investigated non-inferiority for neonatal outcome of temporizing management as compared with immediate delivery (TOTEM NTR 2986) in women between 27+5 and 33+5 weeks of gestation admitted for early-onset severe preeclampsia with or without HELLP syndrome. In participants allocated to receive immediate delivery, either induction of labor or cesarean section was initiated at least 48 hours after admission. Primary outcomes were adverse perinatal outcome, defined as a composite of severe respiratory distress syndrome, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, culture proven sepsis, intraventricular hemorrhage grade 3 or worse, periventricular leukomalacia grade 2 or worse, necrotizing enterocolitis stage 2 or worse, and perinatal death. Major maternal complications were secondary outcomes. It was estimated 1130 women needed to be enrolled. Analysis was by intention-to-treat. RESULTS: The trial was halted after 35 months because of slow recruitment. Between February 2011 and December 2013, a total of 56 women were randomized to immediate delivery (n = 26) or temporizing management (n = 30). Median gestational age at randomization was 30 weeks. Median prolongation of pregnancy was 2 days (interquartile range 1-3 days) in the temporizing management group. Mean birthweight was 1435 g after immediate delivery vs 1294 g after temporizing management (P = .14). The adverse perinatal outcome rate was 55% in the immediate delivery group vs 52% in the temporizing management group (relative risk 1.06; 95% confidence interval 0.67-1.70). In both groups there was one neonatal death and no maternal deaths. In the temporizing treatment group, one woman experienced pulmonary edema and one placental abruption. Analyses of only the singleton pregnancies did not result in other outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Early termination of the trial precluded any conclusions for the main outcomes. We observed that temporizing management resulted in a modest prolongation of pregnancy without changes in perinatal and maternal outcome. Conducting a randomized study for this important research question did not prove feasible.

Electromyographically recorded patellar reflex in normotensive pregnant women and patients with preeclampsia.

OBJECTIVE: To define reference values of the patellar reflex in normotensive pregnant and postpartum women and to compare these with values in women with preeclampsia. DESIGN: Observational study. SETTING: University teaching hospital in the Netherlands. POPULATION: Normotensive non-pregnant women, pregnant women and preeclamptic women. METHODS: In normotensive pregnant women the patellar reflex was cross-sectionally recorded using surface electromyography at four time points during pregnancy and six to eight weeks postpartum. In non-pregnant normotensive women this was recorded once. Preeclamptic women were recorded during pregnancy and postpartum. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Latency and amplitude of the compound muscle action potential of the patellar reflex. RESULTS: Latency and amplitude of the compound muscle action potential during normotensive pregnancies showed no changes compared with the non-pregnant state during reproductive age. Latency of the compound muscle action potential was increased in pregnancies with severe preeclampsia compared with normotensive pregnancies. These differences disappeared postpartum. CONCLUSIONS: During pregnancy, the patellar reflex can be assessed using surface electromyography. Latency and amplitude show no changes during normotensive pregnancies and are no different from the postpartum or non-pregnant values. In severely preeclamptic women, latency is increased. The clinical value of this is limited.

Cerebral perfusion pressure in women with preeclampsia is elevated even after treatment of elevated blood pressure.

Cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) is elevated in preeclampsia, and may predispose to cerebrovascular complications and progression to eclampsia. We estimated zero flow pressure (ZFP) and CPP using simultaneously obtained arterial blood pressure and middle cerebral artery blood flow velocity in 10 women with preeclampsia, all treated with methyldopa with or without nifedipine, and 18 healthy pregnant controls. Mean ± SD ZFP was lower in women with preeclampsia than in controls (16.8 ± 10.9 vs. 31.7 ± 15.0 mmHg, p = 0.01) whereas CPP was considerably higher (82.3 ± 17.7 vs. 55.0 ± 11.7 mmHg, p < 0.001), as was the cerebral flow index (41.9 ± 18.0 vs. 25.6 ± 11.2, p = 0.02). There was a significant correlation between blood pressure and CPP in women with preeclampsia, but not in controls. Women with preeclampsia may have an increased cerebral perfusion due to a reduced ZFP and increased CPP despite treatment with antihypertensive medication. More rigorous antihypertensive therapy, aimed at reducing CPP, could result in a decrease in cerebral complications in women with preeclampsia.

Neuro-obstetrics: A multidisciplinary approach to care of women with neurologic disease.

The term "neuro-obstetrics" refers to a multidisciplinary approach to the care of pregnant women with neurologic comorbidities, both preconceptionally and throughout pregnancy. General preconception care should be offered to all women, including women with neurologic disease. Women with neurologic comorbidities should also be offered specialist preconception care by an obstetrician who consults with a neurologist, anesthesiologist, and if indicated clinical geneticist and/or other specialists. In women with neurologic comorbidities, neurologic sequelae may influence the course of the pregnancy and delivery. Also, pregnancy may influence the severity of the neurologic condition, depending on the type of disease. Physiologic adaptations during pregnancy and altered pharmacokinetics may cause altered blood serum levels of drugs, leading to decreased or increased drug effects. When administering drugs to a woman who wishes to conceive, it is important to consider possible teratogenic effects and possible secretion in breast milk. Tailoring medication regimens should be considered, preferably preconceptionally. In this chapter, we review general principles of neuro-obstetric care, as well as some specific considerations for neurologists, obstetricians, and anesthesiologists caring for pregnant women with common neurologic conditions.

Visual evoked potentials in women with and without preeclampsia during pregnancy and postpartum.

OBJECTIVE: Preeclampsia is a severe hypertensive disorder of pregnancy which may lead to brain complications such as eclampsia. Visual symptoms are present in ∼25% of preeclamptic women suggesting the visual cortex to be altered during preeclampsia. Visual evoked potentials (VEPs) measure the functional neuronal integrity of the visual pathway from retina to the occipital cortex of the brain. The objective of this study was to compare neurophysiological changes in women with preeclampsia and other hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, using VEPs. We hypothesized that women with preeclampsia and other hypertensive disorders of pregnancy develop abnormal latency and amplitude of VEPs as compared with normotensive pregnant women. METHODS: We performed a prospective observational study in 15 women with mild preeclampsia, 33 with severe preeclampsia (sPE), eight women with chronic hypertension, nine with pregnancy-induced hypertension, and 29 normotensive pregnant women. VEP measurements were made at four different time points of gestation (12-14 weeks, 26-28 weeks, 32-34 weeks, 36-40 weeks) and 6-8 weeks postpartum. RESULTS: We defined reference values for normotensive pregnant women. Normotensive pregnant women had a shorter latency during pregnancy compared to their postpartum value (P = 0.005). Women with sPE had a prolonged latency of VEPs compared with normotensive pregnant women (P = 0.006), a difference that disappeared postpartum. CONCLUSION: Our study showed neurophysiological adaptation to pregnancy of the visual cortex in normotensive pregnant women, that seemed to be absent in women with sPE. The study groups of women with chronic hypertension and pregnancy-induced hypertension were to small to draw any conslusions from.

Electroencephalography in Normotensive and Hypertensive Pregnancies and Subsequent Quality of Life.

OBJECTIVES: To compare electroencephalography (EEG) findings during pregnancy and postpartum in women with normotensive pregnancies and pregnancies complicated by hypertensive disorders. Also the health related quality of life postpartum was related to these EEG findings. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An observational case-control study in a university hospital in the Netherlands. Twenty-nine normotensive and 58 hypertensive pregnant women were included. EEG's were recorded on several occasions during pregnancy and 6-8 weeks postpartum. Postpartum, the women filled out health related quality of life questionnaires. Main outcome measures were qualitative and quantitative assessments on EEG, multidimensional fatigue inventory, Short Form (36) Health Survey and EuroQoL visual analogue scale. RESULTS: In women with severe preeclampsia significantly lower alpha peak frequency, more delta and theta activity bilaterally and a higher EEG Sum Score were seen. Postpartum, these women showed impaired mental health, mental fatigue and social functioning, which could not be related to the EEG findings. CONCLUSIONS: Severe preeclamptic patients show more EEG abnormalities and have impaired mental wellbeing postpartum, but these findings are not correlated.

Electroencephalography during normotensive and hypertensive pregnancy: a systematic review.

UNLABELLED: The objective of this review was to evaluate the available medical literature concerning the electroencephalogram (EEG) during hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. All articles found during a MEDLINE and Embase database search on the subject of EEG differences associated with hypertensive disorders in pregnancy were screened for eligibility. In all, 22 articles which describe the EEG during preeclampsia (PE)/eclampsia were retrieved. Abnormal EEG findings were observed in the majority of the preeclamptic/eclamptic patients, consisting of slow waves most frequently localized in the occipital lobe, as well as spike discharges. The EEG abnormalities in PE/eclampsia were reversible in the majority of the cases. We conclude that these described abnormalities may be interpreted as a warning sign of deterioration of brain function in PE/eclampsia. However, some caution regarding this conclusion is advised because most of the retrieved articles were published in the 1950s and 1960s, and were not consistent with current clinical guidelines or medical terminology. Further research is needed to establish the clinical value of implementing EEGs in the assessment of the preeclamptic/eclamptic patient. TARGET AUDIENCE: Obstetricians & Gynecologists, Neurologists, Family Physicians. LEARNING OBJECTIVES: After completion of this educational activity, the obstetrician, gynecologist and neurologist should be better able to evaluate whether the EEG is normal for pregnancy; distinguish EEG abnormalities in hypertensive disorders in pregnancy, and assess the value of EEG abnormalities in preeclampsia (PE)/eclampsia for the detection of early signs of ischemia.