Preeclampsia, previously known to doctors as “toxemia of pregnancy,” involves three major changes in the body: dangerous elevations of blood pressure, dangerous retention of fluids in parts of the body, and kidney damage resulting in protein deposits in the urine. The condition usually starts after week 20 of pregnancy and is progressive, which means that it grows worse if not treated. Preeclampsia is a condition that continues to baffle doctors and researchers, and in the last 10 years, its incidence has risen by roughly 30 percent. The Preeclampsia Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated reducing the effects of preeclampsia for mothers and their unborn children, notes that the condition currently affects roughly five to eight of every 100 pregnant women.
