If a pregnant woman has already been diagnosed with pre-eclampsia during the current pregnancy and then develops a seizure, she may be assigned a 'clinical diagnosis' of<unk>  without further workup. While seizures are most common in the third trimester, they may occur any time from 20 weeks of pregnancy until 6 weeks after birth. A diagnosis of<unk>  is most likely given the symptoms and medical history, and<unk>  can be assumed to be the correct diagnosis until proven otherwise. However, if a woman has a seizure and it is unknown whether or not she has pre-eclampsia, testing can help make the diagnosis clear. Vital signs One of the core features of pre-eclampsia is high blood pressure. Blood pressure is a measurement of two numbers. If either the top number (systolic blood pressure) is greater than 140 mmHg or the bottom number (diastolic blood pressure) is greater than 90 mmHg, then the blood pressure is higher than the normal range and the person has high blood pressure. If the systolic blood pressure is greater than 160 or the diastolic pressure is greater than 110, the hypertension is considered to be severe. Laboratory testing Another core feature of pre-eclampsia is proteinuria, which is the presence of excess protein in the urine. To determine if proteinuria is present, the urine can be collected and tested for protein; if there is 0.3 grams of protein or more in the urine of a pregnant woman collected over 24 hours, this is one of the diagnostic criteria for pre-eclampsia and raises the suspicion that a seizure is due to<unk> . In cases of severe<unk>  or pre-eclampsia, the level of platelets in the blood can be low in a condition termed thrombocytopenia. A complete blood count, or CBC, is a test of the blood that can be performed to check platelet levels. Other investigations include: kidney function test, liver function tests (LFT), coagulation screen, 24-hour urine creatinine, and fetal/placental ultrasound. Differential diagnosis Convulsions during pregnancy that are unrelated to pre-eclampsia need to be distinguished from<unk> . Such disorders include seizure disorders as well as brain tumor, aneurysm of the brain, and medication- or drug-related seizures. Usually, the presence of the signs of severe pre-eclampsia precede and accompany<unk> , facilitating the diagnosis.
Eclampsia
Pre-eclampsia
Hypertensive disease of pregnancy
Hyperemesis gravidarum
Early pregnancy bleeding
Gestational hypertension
Antepartum bleeding
Recurrent miscarriage