00029378_s0002937813x00055_s0002937813001567_main
TRANSCRIPT
-
7/30/2019 00029378_S0002937813X00055_S0002937813001567_main
1/6
O B S T E T R I C S
Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome
in 46 of 47 patients with eclampsiaJustin Brewer, MD; Michelle Y. Owens, MD; Kedra Wallace, PhD; Amanda A. Reeves, MD; Rachael Morris, MD;
Majid Khan, MD; Babbette LaMarca, PhD; James N. Martin Jr, MD
OBJECTIVE: We sought to investigate the concurrence of posterior re-
versible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) with eclampsia and to de-
scribe the obstetric, radiological, and critical care correlates.
STUDY DESIGN: This was a single-center, 2001-2010 retrospective
cohort study of all patients with eclampsia who underwent neuroimag-
ing via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computerized tomography
(CT) with or without contrast.
RESULTS: Forty-six of 47 of eclamptic patients (97.9%) revealed PRES
on neuroimaging using 1 or more modalities: MRI without contrast, 41(87.2%); MRI with contrast, 27 (57.4%); CT without contrast,16 (34%);
CT with contrast, 7 (14.8%); and/or magnetic resonance angiography/
magnetic resonance venography, 2 (4.3%). PRES was identified within
the parietal, occipital, frontal, temporal, and basal ganglia/brainstem/
cerebellum areas of the brain. Eclampsia occurred antepartum in 23
patients and postpartum in 24 patients. Headache was the most com-
mon presenting symptom (87.2%) followed by altered mental status
(51.1%), visual disturbances (34%), and nausea/vomiting (19.1%). Se-
vere systolic hypertension was present in 22 patients (47%).
CONCLUSION: The common finding of PRES in patients with eclampsia
suggests that PRES is a core componentof thepathogenesis of eclamp-
sia. Therapy targeted at prevention or reversal of PRES pathogenesis
may prevent or facilitate recovery from eclampsia.
Key words: cerebral imaging, eclampsia, posterior reversible
encephalopathy syndrome
Cite this article as: Brewer J, Owens MY, Wallace K, et al. Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome in 46 of 47 patients with eclampsia. Am J Obstet Gynecol
2013;208:468.e1-6.
Posterior reversible encephalopathysyndrome (PRES) was first de-scribed in 1996 by Hinchey et al.1 In this
case series of 15 patients, the authors de-
scribed a condition markedby headache,altered mental status,seizures, andvisual
changes. These patients were also found
to display extensive white-matter changes
suggestive of posterior cerebral edema.
This group first named this syndrome re-
versible posterior leukoencephalopathy
syndrome, but it has also been known by
manyother names including PRES, hyper-
perfusion encephalopathy, brain capillary
leak syndrome, and hypertensive enceph-alopathy.1 PRES has been associated with
many conditions including eclampsia, se-
vere hypertension, autoimmune disease,
treatment with cytotoxic medications,
posttransplantation immunosuppression,
and infection with sepsis to name a few.2
Generalized seizures are often the
most common clinical manifestation of
PRES, but patients will also present with
signs of encephalopathy such as altered
mental status, headaches, nausea, and
vomitting.2-4 Visual disturbances are
also common, varying from mild blurry
vision to complete cortical blindness.3
Hypertension is associated with the ma-
jority of cases, although blood pressure
may be normal or only mildly elevated in
up to 20-30% of cases.5 Inthe seriesof 36
patients presented by Lee et al, 3 the
mean systolic blood pressure was 187
mm Hg (range, 80240 mm Hg) within
24 hours of presentation. Laboratory
findings can also vary, depending on theunderlying associated condition.
Neuroimaging findings of PRES have
been described in scores of eclamptic pa-
tients since the 1996 report of Hinchey etal,1 usually in single case reports or small
case series. How often PRES occurs inassociation with eclampsia is unknown.To our knowledge, there is no large pa-
tient series exploringthe relationship be-
tween eclampsia and the concurrence of
PRES. The purpose of this study was to
determine what percentage of eclamptic
women at our institution displayed find-
ings of PRES when neuroimagingstudies
were undertaken. We also soughtto deter-
mine which treatment modalities were
used to manage these patients and to ex-
plore how well these interventions had animpact on overall patient outcome.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
This project was a single-center, retro-
spective cohort study inclusive of the
years 2001-2010, which was approved by
the institutional review board at the Uni-
versity of Mississippi Medical Center.
Inclusion criteria were pregnancy or
within6 weeks postpartum;neuroimag-
ing via magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) or MRI and/or magnetic reso-
From the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine,Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology,Winfred L. Wiser Hospital for Women andInfants (Drs Brewer, Owens, Wallace, Reeves,Morris, LaMarca, and Martin), and theDepartment of Radiology andNeurology/Neurosciences (Dr Khan), Universityof Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS.
Received Sept. 28, 2012; revised Jan. 4, 2013;accepted Feb. 5, 2013.
This study was supported by the Division ofMaternal-Fetal Medicine, Department ofObstetrics and Gynecology, University ofMississippi Medical Center.
The authors report no conflict of interest.
Reprints not available from the authors.
0002-9378/$36.00
2013 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2013.02.015
Research www.AJOG.org
468.e1 American Journal of Obstetrics &Gynecology JUNE 2013
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2013.02.015http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2013.02.015http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2013.02.015 -
7/30/2019 00029378_S0002937813X00055_S0002937813001567_main
2/6
nance angiography (MRA) and/or com-
puterized tomography (CT) performed
during hospitalization; and diagnosis of
eclampsia. Exclusion criteria included not
being pregnant or longer than 6 weeks
postpartum; no diagnosis of eclampsia;
MRI or MRA neuroimaging not per-
formed during hospitalization; diagnosis
of cerebral hemorrhage; known seizuredisorder; and later diagnosis of seizure
from a source other than eclampsia.
We investigated all women considered
to have eclampsia who underwent neu-
roimaging studies upon admission to
our tertiary care referral hospital. Cases
to be investigatedwere determined based on
a discharge diagnosis of eclampsia. The
appropriate charts were collected, and
the women who underwent neuroimag-
ing were selected for study. The majority
of these patients underwent imagingwithin the first 24 hours after admission.
The medical records of patients with ec-
lampsia who underwent cranial imaging
were identified, evaluated, and pertinent
data extracted. If neuroimaging was not
undertaken for an eclamptic patient, no
further data accrual was undertaken.
Imaging analysis
The imaging modalities used includedMRI, MRA, and CT both with and with-
out contrast. The diagnosis of PRES was
made by radiologists using the standard
radiological criteria for PRES. PRES has
a unique MRI and CT imaging appear-
ance, which is demonstrated as subcorti-
cal and gyral T2-weighted and fluid at-
tenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR)
signal hyperintensities that become
more diffuse as the extent of edema in-
creases. Focal areas include symmetric
multilobar/hemispheric edema with pre-dominant involvement of parietal and
occipital lobes. In addition, frontal lobes
and the inferior temporal-occipital junc-
tion are also focal areas, less commonly
the cerebellum.5 This group of women
included both antepartum and postpar-
tum eclampsia.
Statistical analysis
Maternal race, gravida, mode of delivery,
systolic hypertension, imaging modality,
site of lesions, and treatment modality
was analyzed via a 2 analysis. Maternal
age, body mass index (BMI), gestational
age at delivery, days in-house, and the
time to return to normalcy were ana-
lyzed using a Student ttest. Data are ex-
pressed as mean SD. A P .05 was
considered significant.
RESULTS
Forty-seven of 123 women considered to
have eclampsia (38.2%) underwent neu-
roimaging studies during the 10 year pe-
riod of 2001-2010 at our academic insti-
tution. The findings from all 47 patients
who underwent neuroimaging are re-
ported in the current study. Among the
47 study subjects were 23 women with
antepartum eclampsia and 24 women
with postpartum eclampsia. In cases of
postpartum eclampsia, on average, thepatient experienced her first seizure onday 6 (range, 0 14 days).
There was not a significant difference
in self-reported maternal ethnicity be-
tween women with antepartum and
postpartum eclampsia (P .729; Table
1). Neither were there anysignificant dif-
ferences in maternal age (P .506), ma-
ternal BMI (P .143), or gravidity (P
.777; Table 1) between the 2 groups.
Women who had antepartumeclamp-
sia primarily delivered via cesarean sec-tion (74%), whereas 67% of the women
with postpartum eclampsia had vaginal
deliveries (P .001; Table 1). Women
with antepartum eclampsia also deliv-
ered earlier than women with postpar-
tum eclampsia (P .002; Table 1) and
had a longer hospital stay than women
with postpartum eclampsia (P .026;
Table 1).
There was a significant difference in
systolic pressures between women with
antepartum or postpartum eclampsia(P .001; Table 1). Significantly more
TABLE 1
Patient demographics based on when seizure occurred
DemographicAntepartum, n (%)(n 23)
Postpartum, n (%)(n 24) Pvalue
Maternal race .729.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
African American 19 (83) 19 (79).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................White 3 (13) 4 (17).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Hispanic 1 (4) 1 (4)..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Maternal age, y 21.21 4.56 22.37 6.97 .506..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Maternal BMI, kg/m2 31.36 10.07 27.46 6.61 .143..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Gravida .777.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Nulliparous 12 (52) 13 (54).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Multiparous 11 (48) 11 (46)..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Gestational age, wks 31.7 4.44 36.6 4.83 .002..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Mode of delivery .001.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Vaginal 6 (26%) 16 (67%).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Cesarean section 17 (74%) 8 (33%)..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
HTN (systolic), mm Hg .001.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
140 4 (17) 4 (17).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
140-159 10 (44)a 7 (29).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
160-180 6 (26) 13 (54)b.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
180 3 (13)c 0 (0)..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Days in-house 5 4.01 2.79 2.41 .026..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
BMI, body mass index; HTN, hypertension.
a Significant compared with women with postpartum eclampsia; b Significant compared with women with antepartum eclampsia;c Significant compared with women with postpartum eclampsia.
Brewer. PRESand eclampsia. AmJ ObstetGynecol2013.
www.AJOG.org Obstetrics Research
JUNE 2013 American Journal of Obstetrics &Gynecology 468.e2
-
7/30/2019 00029378_S0002937813X00055_S0002937813001567_main
3/6
women with antepartum eclampsia
(44%) had systolic blood pressures be-
tween 140 and 159 mm Hg (P .039;
Table 1) compared with women with
postpartum eclampsia, whereas 54% of
women with postpartum eclampsia had
systolic blood pressures between 160and180 mm Hg, which was significantlymore compared with women with ante-
partum eclampsia (P .0001; Table 1).
In addition, no women with antepartum
eclampsia developed systolic pressures
greaterthan180mmHg,whereas13%of
women with antepartum eclampsia had
systolic pressures greater than 180 mm
Hg (P .002; Table 1). Allstudy subjects
had singleton gestations. There were no
maternal deaths in the current study.
Headache was the most common pre-senting symptom (87.2%) followed by
altered mental status (51.1%), visual dis-
turbance (34%), and nausea/vomiting
(19.1%). A diagnosis of PRES was made
in 46 of 47 women (97.9%) who were
considered to have eclampsia. This diag-
nosis was made using 1 or more imaging
modalities including MRI without con-
trast (n 41), MRI with contrast (n
27), CT without contrast (n 16), CT
with contrast (n 7), and/or MRA/
magnetic resonance venography(n
2).There was not a significant difference inthe imaging modality used when women
with antepartum eclampsia were com-
pared with women with postpartum ec-
lampsia (P .984; Table 2). Radiological
evidence of PRES was found in multiple
sites between women who developed ec-
lampsia in the antepartum (87%) and
postpartum (88%) periods. There was
not a significant difference in the site of
lesions between the 2 groups (P .705;
Table 2).Full data regarding the use of various
treatment modalities were available for
38 of the 47 patients (80.8%) and is re-
ported in Table 2. Magnesium sulfate
given as an initial intravenous bolus fol-
lowed by a continuous infusion was uti-
lized all of these women. Supplemental
therapies included intravenous antihy-
pertensives (labetalol, hydralazine, or ni-
fedipine), diuretic agents, and potent
glucocorticoids. The corticosteroids used
in these patients included either intrave-nous (IV) dexamethasone or betametha-
sone for enhanced fetal lung maturation
or maternal treatment for concurrent
hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and
low platelet count (HELLP) syndrome.6
There was a significant difference in
treatment modality, in which women
with antepartum eclampsia were treated
with steroids significantly (P .001)
more often than women with postpar-
tum eclampsia.
We made an intensiveeffort in this ret-rospective study to determine the length
of time that it took for these women to
return to normalcy following the initial
eclamptic seizure and whether the use of
various treatments altered this time pe-
riod. Normalcy was defined clinically as
the absence of visual problems, head-
ache, nausea/vomiting, or altered senso-
rium. The mean time from seizure to
normalcy was 36.5 hours when a diuretic
was given, 34.8 hours when antihyper-
tensives were given, and32.9 hours whencorticosteroids (IV dexamethasone) were
utilized (range, 9 135 hours forall inter-
ventions because the patients with the
shortest and longest stays received all 3
treatments). For the 19 patients who re-
ceived corticosteroids after the initial sei-
zure, the mean time between steroid ini-
tiation and a return to normalcy was 17
hours. The Figure demonstrates the time
to return to normalcy based on antepar-
tum and postpartum eclampsia. There
was not a significant difference betweenthe groups when magnesium sulfate was
administered (P .977),with or without
antihypertensives (P .955), diuretics
(P .778), or steroids (P .829;
Figure).
COMMENT
The present series of patients is the larg-
est single institutional series of imaged
eclamptic patients with evidence of
PRES in the United States that has beenpublished to date. Consistent with the
TABLE 2
Results for MRI and CT for patients with PRES
VariableAntepartum, n (%)(n 23)
Postpartum, n (%)(n 24) Pvalue
Imaging modality used .984.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
MRI without contrast 20 (87) 21 (88).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................MRI with contrast 14 (61) 13 (54).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
CT without contrast 8 (35) 8 (33).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
CT with contrast 3 (13) 4 (17).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
MRA/MRV 1 (4) 1 (4)..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Site of lesion .705.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Occipital lobe 18 (78) 17 (71).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Parietal lobe 17 (74) 19 (79).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Temporal lobe 6 (26) 7 (29).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Frontal lobe 12 (52) 17 (71).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Basal ganglia/cerebellum 5 (22) 6 (25).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Multiple areas 20 (87) 21 (88)..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Treatment modality used (results from 0.01938 patients reported).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Magnesium sulfate 19 (100) 19 (100).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Antihypertensives 17 (89) 16 (84).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Diuretic 13 (68) 12 (63).....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Steriodsa 13 (68) 6 (32)..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
CT, computerized tomography;MRA/MRV, magneticresonance angiography/magnetic resonancevenography;MRI, magnetic
resonance imaging; PRES, posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome.
a Women with antepartum eclampsia were treated with steroids significantly more often than women with postpartum eclampsia.
Brewer. PRES andeclampsia.Am J ObstetGynecol2013.
Research Obstetrics www.AJOG.org
468.e3 American Journal of Obstetrics &Gynecology JUNE 2013
-
7/30/2019 00029378_S0002937813X00055_S0002937813001567_main
4/6
recently published summary of current
knowledge about PRES by Sraykov and
Schwab,2 the current study revealed sev-
eral important findings that are suitable
for emphasis. First, advanced neuroim-aging techniques such as magnetic reso-nance imaging and/or computerized to-
mography indicated the presence of
PRES in every patient with eclampsia; a
single patient without evidence of PRES
was later determined to have an under-
lying seizure disorder. Second, although
headache (87%) and visual disturbance
(34%) were common symptoms presag-
ing eclampsia and PRES, they were not
universal nor was severe systolic hyper-
tension (47%) a constant feature. Third,PRES was identified often in multiple ar-
eas of the brain, not just the occipital re-
gion, consistent with the findings of oth-
ers.7 In addition, the results from this
study reconfirms a recent study from the
Mayo Clinic, in which all eclamptic pa-
tients who underwent imaging had clin-
ical and radiological findings of PRES.8
Of great importance, the authors be-
lieve that aggressive comprehensive and
meticulous medical management may
have been a factor in facilitating com-plete maternal recovery over a usually
brief hospitalization averaging 4 days
without a single maternal death.
The evidence from our report sup-
ports the hypothesis that PRES is the pri-
mary central nervous system injury inpatients with eclampsia. Some of thechanges in normal pregnancy include
substantially increased levels of vasoan-
giogenic growth factors and cytokines
into the maternal circulation. However,
during normal pregnancy the blood-brain
barrier (BBB) adapts to prevent these cir-
culating permeability factors from enter-
ing the brain and leading to vasogenic
brainedema.9,10 Interestingly plasmafrom
preeclampticwomenhasbeenfoundtoin-
crease BBB permeability, thereby suggest-ing that an increase in BBB permeability
could permit passage of damaging antiva-
sogenic and antiendothelial proteins into
thebrain to cause theneurological compli-
cations of eclampsia.11
Because not all patients with eclampsia
exhibit significant hypertension or sub-
stantialproteinuriapriortothefirstseizure
andbecausebrain imaging with MRIprior
toseizureineclampticwomenhasrevealed
evidence of vasogenic edema,12,13 the pri-
mary explanation for the pathogenesis ofneurological symptoms and cerebral
edema formation during eclampsia is that
it represents a form of PRES like that seen
in other disease processes such as hyper-
tensive encephalopathy.14
With PRES there is a loss of autoregu-
latory capacity, BBB disruption, and
subsequent vasogenic edema around ce-rebral arteries and arterioles.15,16 So-called normotensive eclampsia may ac-
tually represent a clinical state caused by
diminished autoregulatory capacity or
enhanced permeability of the BBB or
both.17-21 In addition, PRES has been
demonstrated in a patient with severe
preeclampsia without seizure, and it has
been demonstrated to precede eclamptic
convulsion.22 These findings are sugges-
tive of PRES as an antecedent to eclamp-
tic seizure as opposed to the result of aneclamptic seizure.
The cerebral pathology of patients
with severe preeclampsia who suffer sei-
zure(s) may be due to microangiopathy
of the cerebral vessels, often with hyper-
tension contributing. Microangiopathy
and/or malfunction of the cerebral vas-
culature may be related to circulating
levels of antiangiogenic factors such as
soluble fms-like tyrosine-1 (sFlt-1) and
soluble endoglin (sEng), which have
been demonstrated to be at higher levelsin patients with eclampsia comparedwith those with severe preeclampsia.23,24
In some animals exposed to high levelsof
sFlt-1 and sEng, researchers have ob-
servedchoroid plexuswith the loss of en-
dothelial fenestrae resembling the glo-
merular endotheliosis of preeclampsia.25
Interestingly, a study by Fugate et al26
found that 45% of women with PRES also
had autoimmune disease, which impli-
cates endothelial dysfunction as a possible
pathophysiological mechanism. Womenwith preeclampsia and animal models of
preeclampsia, in which endothelial dys-
function is a key feature, also have some of
the characteristics of autoimmune disease,
such as increases in interleukin-17 and T
helper 17 lymphocytes.27,28
Treatment of eclampsia, and thus
PRES, is best accomplished using mag-
nesium sulfate; however, the effect of
magnesiumsulfate in the prevention and
treatment of eclampsia likely is multifac-
torial.29-31
In the peripheral vasculatureor cerebrovasculature, magnesium sul-
FIGURE
Treatment modality does not affect the time to return to normalcy
The time to return to normalcy after the initial eclamptic seizure was compared between women with
antepartum eclampsia and women with postpartum eclampsia. Data from 38 patients was collected
and is represented as the mean time SD.
Brewer. PRES andeclampsia.Am J ObstetGynecol2013.
www.AJOG.org Obstetrics Research
JUNE 2013 American Journal of Obstetrics &Gynecology 468.e4
-
7/30/2019 00029378_S0002937813X00055_S0002937813001567_main
5/6
fate may act as a vasodilator to decrease
peripheral resistance or relieve vasocon-
striction. In the central nervous system,
magnesium sulfate may also protect the
BBB and thereby limit cerebral edema
formation as well as act through a central
anticonvulsant action.
29
Control of hypertension is also con-sidered a core management component
for PRES treatment.2 Antihypertensive
treatment using intravenous labetalol,
hydralazine, or nicardipine is usually
recommended for the prevention of se-
vere systolic hypertension of more than
160 mm Hg and/or severe diastolic hy-
pertension of more than 105-110 mm
Hg.32,33 Gradual correction to target lev-
els of 140-155 mm Hg systolic and 90-
105 mm Hg diastolic are advisable toprotect the mother and to avert compro-
mised uteroplacental blood flow. Intra-
venousdexamethasone is widelyused for
the treatment of cerebral edema, espe-
cially in patients with intracranial tu-
mors because of its long biological half-
life, its low mineralocorticoid activity,
and its well-described effect in minimiz-
ing vasogenic peritumoral edema.34-36
In addition to these clinical data, stud-
ies in experimental animals have shown
that administration of IV dexametha-sone leads to a reduction of poststrokebrain edema.37 Thus, there is accumulat-
ing evidence to suggest a possible role for
potent glucocorticoids along with mag-
nesium sulfate and blood pressure con-
trol in pregnant patients with PRES/ec-
lampsia.38 This is supported by our
findings in the present study showing
faster normalization of central nervous
system function following eclampsia
when IV dexamethasone is given for
HELLP syndrome or intramuscular be-tamethasone is given to enhance fetal
lung maturation.
The current study used MRI and CT
imaging to identify the abnormal T2/
FLAIR signals associated withPRES.Dif-
fusion-weighted imaging is also capable
of distinguishing between vasogenic and
cytotoxic edema andcan be used to iden-
tify PRES. Differentiating the underlying
etiology of PRES based on imaging alone
is not possible at this time, despite the
advanced imaging techniques (ie, brainperfusion imaging, magnetic resonance
spectroscopy), but as the current study
and others have shown, neuroimaging in
conjunction with clinical diagnosis can
help identify eclamptic patients with
PRES.8
Our study shares the same shortcom-
ings of any retrospective investigation,including selection bias. Because of lo-gistical, cost, or consideration of value to
patient management in individual cases,
only 47 of 123 eclamptic patients had
neuroimaging requested by the physi-
cians who were caring for this patient
group. In addition, we do not have infor-
mation regarding women with severe
preeclampsia who had neuroimaging.
There was no consistent protocol in
place to direct who would or who would
not undergo neuroimaging, whichintro-duces a selection bias in regard to the pa-
tients who were neuroimaged; utiliza-
tion increased during the last half of the
decade that spanned the course of study
as greater interest in the information
provided led to more frequent ordering
of the test.
It is possible that a smaller percentage
of eclamptic patients may have exhibited
PRES had all patients been studied uni-
formly. Every medical record for pa-
tients discharged with a diagnosis of ec-lampsia were scrutinized carefully toidentify all those who underwent neuro-
imaging; the same research nurse re-
cordedthe data from themedical records
of all patients and the same physicians
(J.B. and A.A.R.) interpreted the radio-
logical reports for consistency and
accuracy.
Another limitation to our study is the
fact that radiologists were not blind to the
diagnosis of the patient because this study
was done retrospectively. Future studieswill include a reanalysis of images by a ra-
diologist blinded to patient diagnoses.
For patients with eclampsia/PRES,
critical care providers inclusive of obste-
trician-gynecologists and maternal-fetal
medicine subspecialists must be cogni-
zant of similar mechanisms of disease
development between eclampsia and
PRES. In the authors opinion, this
knowledge should be translated into a
rapidly initiated, comprehensive man-
agement program including intrave-nously infused magnesium sulfate,
blood pressure control, intensive mater-
nal-fetal surveillance, meticulous medi-
cal care, timely delivery, and potent glu-
cocorticoids, especially if evidence of
HELLP syndrome is also present.
Because PRES was found in almost
100% of patients with probable eclampsia,a randomized, prospective, placebo-con-trolled, and blinded trial is now underway
for patients with eclampsia to receive IV
dexamethasone or placebo soon after an
eclamptic seizure and to assess benefit if
anywhen givenin combination with mag-
nesium sulfate therapy. f
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We thank Pamela Blake, the research nurse inthe Department of Obstetrics-Gynecology atthe University of Mississippi Medical Center, forher hard work in reviewing and collecting datafrom the patient charts.
REFERENCES
1. Hinchey J, Chaves C, Appignani B, et al. Areversible posterior leukoencephalopathy syn-drome. N Engl J Med 1996;334:494-500.2. Sraykov D, Schwab S. Posterior reversibleencephalopathy syndrome. J Intensive CareMed 2012;27:11-24.3. LeeV, Wijdicks EFM, Manno E, Rabinstein A.Clinical spectrum of reversible posterior leuko-encaphalopathy syndrome. Arch Neurol 2008;
65:205-10.4. Garg RK. Posterior leukoencephalopathysyndrome. Postgrad Med J 2001;77:24.5. Bartynski WS. Posterior reversible encepha-lopathy syndrome, part 1: fundamental imagingand clinical features. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol2008;29:1036-42.6. Martin JN Jr, Owens MY, Keiser SD, et al.Standardized Mississippi Protocol treatment of190 patients with HELLP syndrome: slowingdisease progression and preventing new majormaternal morbidity. Hypertens Pregnancy2012;31:79-90.7. Mueller-Mang C, Mang T, Pirker A, Klein K,Prchla C, Prayer D. Posterior reversibleenceph-
alopathy syndrome: do predisposing risk fac-tors make a difference in MRI appearance?Neuroradiol 2009;51:373-83.8. Wagner SJ, Acquah LA, Lindell EP, et al.Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndromeand eclampsia: pressing the case for more ag-gressive bloodpressure control. MayoClin Proc2011;86:851-6.9. Cipolla MJ, Sweet JG, Chan SL. Cerebralvascular adaptation to pregnancy and its role inthe neurological complications of eclampsia.J Appl Physiol 2010;110:329-39.10. Cipolla MJ, Smith J, Bishop N, Bullinger LV,Godfrey JA. Pregnancy reverses hypertensive
remodeling of cerebral arteries. Hypertension2008;51:1052-7.
Research Obstetrics www.AJOG.org
468.e5 American Journal of Obstetrics &Gynecology JUNE 2013
-
7/30/2019 00029378_S0002937813X00055_S0002937813001567_main
6/6
11. Aubergey OA, Chapman AC, May V, Bern-stein IM, Cipolla MJ. Plasma from preeclampticwomen increases blood-brain barrier permeability:role of vascular endothelial growth factor signal-ing. Hypertension 2010;56:1003-8.12. Schwartz RB, Feske SK, Polak JF, et al.Preeclampsia-eclampsia: clinical and neurora-diographic correlates and insights into the
pathogenesis of hypertensive encephalopathy.Radiology 2000;217:371.13. DahmusMA, BartonJR, Sibai BM.Cerebralimaging in eclampsia: magnetic resonance im-aging versus computed tomography. Am J Ob-stet Gynecol 1992;167:935-41.14. Mirza A. Posterior reversible encephalopa-thy syndrome (PRES): a variant of hypertensiveencephalopathy. J Clin Neurosci 2006;13:590-5.15. Pula JH, Eggenberger E. Posterior revers-ible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES). CurrOpin Ophthalmol 2008;19:479-84.16. Bartynski WS. Posterior reversible enceph-
alopathy syndrome, part 2: controversies sur-rounding pathophysiology of vasogenic edema.
AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 2008;29:1043-9.17. Katz VL, Farmer R, Kuller JA. Preeclampsiainto eclampsia: toward a new paradigm. Am JObstet Gynecol 2000;182:1389-96.18. Wassef S. Mechanisms of convulsion in ec-lampsia. Med Hypotheses 2009;72:49-51.19. Cipolla MJ. Cerebrovascular function inpregnancy and eclampsia. Hypertension 2007;50:14-24.20. Cipolla MJ, Li R, Vitullo L. Cerebral arteryreactivity changes during pregnancy and thepostpartum period: a role in eclampsia? Am JPhysiol HeartCirc Physiol 2004;286:H2127-32.21. Cipolla MJ,Smith J, Bishop N, Bullinger LV,Godfrey JA. Pregnancy reverses hypertensiveremodeling of cerebral arteries. Hypertension2008;51:1052-7.
22. Ekawa Y, Shiota M, Toblume T, et al. Re-versible posterior leukoecephalopathy syn-drome accompanying eclampsia: correct diag-nosis using preoperative MRI. Tohoku J ExpMed 2012;226:55-8.23. Karumanchi SA, Lindheimer MD. Advancesin the understanding of eclampsia. Curr Hyper-tens Rep 2008;10:305-12.24. Vaisbuch E, Whitty JE, Hassan SS, et al.Circulating angiogenic and antiangiogenic fac-tors in women with eclampsia. Am J ObstetGynecol 2011;204:152.e1-9.25. Maharaj AS, Walshe TE, Saint-Geniez M, etal. VEGF and TGF-beta are required for themaintenance of the choroid plexus andependyma. J Exp Med 2008;205:491-501.26. Fugate JE, Claassen DO, Cloft HJ, KallmesDF, Kozak OS, Rabinstein AA.Posterior revers-ible encephalopathy syndrome: associatedclinical and radiologic findings. Mayo Clin Proc2010;85:427-32.27. Darmochwal-Kolarz D, Kludka-Sternik M,
Tabarkiewicz J, et al. The predominance ofTh17 lymphocytes and decreased number andfunction of TReg cells in preeclampsia. J Re-prod Immun 2012;93:75-81.28. Wallace K, Richards S, Dhillon P, et al.CD4 T helper cells stimulated in responseto placental ischemia mediate hypertensionduring pregnancy. Hypertension 2011;57:949-55.29. Euser AG, Cipolla MJ. Magnesium sulfatefor the treatment of eclampsia: a brief review.Stroke 2009;40:1169-75.30. LaMarca B, Brewer J, Wallace K. IL-6-in-duced pathophysiology during preeclampsia:potential therapeutic role for magnesium sul-fate? Int J Infereron Cytokine Mediator Res2011;2011:59-64.31. Demir BC, Ozerkan K, Ozbek SE, YildirimEN, Ocakoglu G. Comparison of magnesium
sulfate and mannitol in treatment of eclamptic
women with posterior reversible encephalopathy
syndrome. Arch Gynecol Obstet 2012;286:
287-93.
32. Martin JN Jr, Thigpen BD, Moore RC, Rose
CH, Cushman J, May WL. Stroke and severe
preeclampsia/eclampsia: a paradigm shift fo-
cusing on systolic blood pressure. Obstet Gy-
necol 2005;105:246-54.
33. American College of Obstetricians and Gy-
necologists. Emergent therapy for acute-onset,
severe hypertension with preeclampsia or ec-
lampsia. ACOG Committee Opinion no. 514,
December 2011.
34. Wallace K, Martin Jr JN, Tam Tam K, et al.
Seeking the Mechanism(s) of Action for Cor-
ticosteroids in HELLP Syndrome: SMASH
Study. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2013 Feb 1. doi:
10.1016/j.ajog.2013.01.049 [Epub ahead of
print].
35. Kotsarini C, Griffiths PD, Wilkinson ID, Hog-
gard N. A systematic review of the literature
on the effects of dexamethasone on the brain
from in vivo human-based studies: implications
for physiological brain imaging of patients with
intracranial tumors. Neurosurg 2010;67:
1799-815.
36. Bebawy JF. Perioperative steroids for peri-
tumoral intracranial edema: a review of mecha-
nisms, efficacy, and side effects. J Neurosurg
Anesthesiol 2012;24:173-7.
37. Tam Tam KB, Keiser SD, Sims S, Brewer
J, Owens MY, Martin JN Jr. Antepartum ec-
lampsia 34 weeks case series: advisable to
postpone delivery to administer corticoste-
roids for fetal pulmonary benefit? J Perinatol
2011;31:161-5.
38. Keiser SD, Owens MY, Parrish MR, et al.
HELLP syndrome with and without eclampsia.
Am J Perinatol 2011;28:187-94.
www.AJOG.org Obstetrics Research
JUNE 2013 American Journal of Obstetrics &Gynecology 468.e6
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2013.01.049http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2013.01.049http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2013.01.049http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2013.01.049