Preeclampsia poses a significant long-term health risk according to new research from Ben-Gurion U.

Thousands of women and their babies die or get very sick from preeclampsia; it affects approximately 5 to 8 percent of all pregnancies. It is a rapidly progressive condition characterized by high blood pressure and the presence of protein in the urine, typically occurring after 20 weeks gestation and up to six weeks postpartum.

According to the study, the BGU researchers found patients with preeclampsia had significantly higher rates of chronic hypertension diagnosed after pregnancy. Patients with preeclampsia were also more likely to be hospitalized at least once. Exposed women had .28 hospitalization per patient rate, while the non-exposed patients had a lower .23 hospitalization per patient rate.

The study included women who gave birth between the years of 1988 to 1998, and had a follow-up until December 2009. It assessed 2,072 patients with mild or severe preeclampsia in one or more of their pregnancies, while the comparison group of 20,742 patients did not have preeclampsia. The study was conducted to evaluate long-term morbidity of patients with hypertensive disorders during pregnancy. Patients with chronic hypertension and pre-gestational diabetes before the pregnancy were excluded.

The researchers, all from BGU's Faculty of Health Sciences, include Guy Shalom, Prof. Ilana Shoham-Vardi, Ruslan Sergienko, Prof. Arnon Wiznitzer, Michael Sherf, and Prof. Eyal Sheiner.

About American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (AABGU) plays a vital role in sustaining David Ben-Gurion's vision, creating a world-class institution of education and research in the Israeli desert, nurturing the Negev community and sharing the University's expertise locally and around the globe. With some 20,000 students on campuses in Beer-Sheva, Sede Boqer and Eilat in Israel's southern desert, BGU is a university with a conscience, where the highest academic standards are integrated with community involvement, committed to sustainable development of the Negev. AABGU is headquartered in Manhattan and has nine regional offices throughout the U.S. For more information, visit www.aabgu.org.

Is preeclampsia a significant risk factor for long-term hospitalizations and morbidity?
J Maternal-Fetal Neonatal Medicine.
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Faculty of Heath Sciences
Shalom G, Shoham-Vardi I, Sergienko R, Wiznitzer A, Sherf M, Sheiner E.