Preeclampsia Has Existed for Roughly 5,000 Years, but There Is Still No Cure — Why Is It Called the “Disease of Theories”?
In the British TV drama Downton Abbey, many viewers were introduced to eclampsia, a life-threatening pregnancy complication, when Lady Sybil had a violent seizure after giving birth.
The show brought the disorder into mainstream conversations, but Preeclampsia (PE) has been around long before Lady Sybil’s fictional ordeal took place in 1920, according to a study in the British Journal of General Practice.
As early as 5,000 years ago, ancient scholars in China, Egypt, Greece, and India all wrote about eclampsia, according to a study in the Journal of Reproductive Immunology. And in 1916, one researcher called it the “disease of theories” because there were many possible causes.
“There is no single cause, but research has uncovered that there are multiple things at play,” Danielle Babcock Sapienza, the education and support manager for the Preeclampsia Foundation, told Discover.
Even today, technological advances have enabled better detection, but there still isn’t a cure, and much remains unknown.
The Impact of Preeclampsia
PE is a disorder that occurs in pregnancy after 20 weeks, according to a study in Krager. The patient experiences hypertension and proteinuria, a high level of protein in their urine. As the study authors put it, PE can cause a “whole host of other potentially serious complications.”
Patients with PE develop swelling in their hands, face, and eyes, and they may gain weight. Patients with severe PE, they may have headaches, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and vision changes. They may show signs of agitation due to cognitive changes.
“Preeclampsia is a serious condition of pregnancy and can be particularly dangerous because many of the signs are silent, while some symptoms resemble ‘normal’ effects of pregnancy on your body. It impacts 5 to 8 percent of pregnancies in the U.S. and can occur up to six weeks after delivery,” Babcock Sapienza shared with Discover.
Technologies such as advanced ultrasound, home blood pressure monitors, and biomarker testing have enabled medical care providers to more effectively detect PE. But if the disorder progresses to eclampsia, the patient will experience seizures and organ damage, which can be fatal to both the mother and fetus, according to a report from StatPearls.
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We Do Know Potential Causes of Preeclampsia
Data analysis has enabled researchers to identify commonalities among patients with PE and to flag potential risk factors. Patients with a history of hypertensive disorders during pregnancy are more likely to develop PE, according to a study in the Journal of Clinical Medicine.
Same with those who have autoimmune disorders, chronic hypertension, chronic renal diseases, and diabetes. Other flagged risk factors include obesity, advanced maternal age, and the use of IVF.
Research is also finding that developing PE may be due to a mix of environmental, genetic, and lifestyle factors. Underneath all this, scientists writing in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology have identified a key cause of the disorder: problems with the placenta.
“The central problem starts early in pregnancy when the placenta may not develop or implant properly,” Babcock Sapienza told Discover.
A stressed placenta leads to vascular issues, including hypertension. Women with preeclampsia are typically placed on bed rest until the fetus can be delivered through cesarean section or induction, according to a study in Cureus.
In the U.S., researchers are seeing that many of the risk factors for PE, such as advanced maternal age, obesity, and chronic hypertension all increased within the last decade. In a 2024 JAMA study, researchers analyzed data from 32,752,948 births in the U.S. between 2010 and 2021.
High PE risk factors like chronic hypertension increased from 1.2 to 2.7 percent during the decade. Moderate risk factors, such as the rate of obesity, increased from 22.5 to 30.5 percent between 2010 and 2011. And advanced maternal age (older than 35 years) increased from 14.7 to 20.1 percent.
More Research Is Needed to Find a Cure
Medical scholars have written about PE for thousands of years, yet there isn’t a cure.
“Research is actively closing the gap, especially in early detection and targeted treatment,” Babcock Sapienza said.
Until a cure beyond delivery is available, PE can continue to be fatal without a timely diagnosis. Each year, as many as 500,000 infants and up to 76,000 mothers worldwide die from PE. It is responsible for 20 percent of maternal mortality, according to a report from Karger.
The authors concluded that public health efforts should target these PE risk factors.
This article is not offering medical advice and should be used for informational purposes only.
Read More: A Healthy Prenatal Stage Could Be Key to Preventing Psychiatric Disorders
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