Pre-eclampsia is a condition of pregnancy characterized by an increase in blood pressure and the amount of protein present in the urine. It occurs at the earliest in the middle of the second trimester and affects around 40,000 women each year in France.
Pre-eclampsia is not a trivial disease: it is the second leading cause of maternal death in France (with around 20 deaths per year) and is responsible for a third of premature births. Experts estimate that 5% of pregnancies are accompanied by preeclampsia.
While, according to Inserm, most patients recover quickly after pre-eclampsia, a new study conducted by the Statens Serum Institut (in Denmark) is less optimistic: according to Danish researchers, women who have experienced pre-eclampsia are, on average, 3 times more likely to suffer from vascular dementia around the age of 60-65.
A link discovered between preeclampsia and vascular dementia
Linked to an abnormality in blood circulation (which causes a lack of oxygenation in certain areas of the brain), vascular dementia leads to a deterioration of cognitive abilities and memory: it causes mood disorders, attention and concentration, problems locating in space and time, memory loss …
To establish this link, the Danish researchers worked with medical data concerning 1.1 million women in Denmark, who gave birth at least once between 1978 and 2015. Verdict: Women who experienced preeclampsia during their pregnancy had about 3 times more likely to have vascular dementia before the age of 65. On the other hand, no link between preeclampsia and Alzheimer’s disease could be established.
“We hope that this work will promote better postpartum follow-up for women who have had a pregnancy with pre-eclampsia” explain the scientists, whose work has been published in the British Medical Journal.
To read :
Pre-eclampsia: a new way to detect it
Pregnancy: probiotics to reduce complications
Pre-eclampsia: aspirin to reduce the risk
