Incidence of eclampsia in intensive care in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico

Abstract

BACKGROUND: According to the Health Ministry of Mexico, preeclampsia represents up to 34% of total maternal deaths. In addition, there are other entities associated with hypertension during pregnancy, such as eclampsia, and in much lower frequency, the HELLP syndrome (hemolysis elevated liver enzymes and low platelets). Together, the latter constitute the main cause of death associated with pregnancy complications. OBJECTIVE: To know the incidence of eclampsia cases entering an intensive care unit and the age group most susceptible to mortality. MATERIAL AND METHOD: An observational, retrospective and cross-sectional study was done using the journal of income and expenditures of the ICU, General Hospital of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico, from January 2012 to December 2018; each variable was statistically analyzed. RESULTS: Of the 2497 patients admitted to the intensive care unit, 227 cases were from Gynecology and Obstetrics. Of these, 206 were diagnosed with general pregnancy complications, in the age group of 13 to 46 years. Eclampsia was found in 48 patients (23.3%), predominating the age of 18 years. CONCLUSIONS: In general, eclampsia represented up to 6.3% of the total number of patients admitted with a complicated pregnancy. In comparison to those reported by the Ministry of Health in 2007, the percentage in this hospital has been reduced up to 34%.