High Blood Pressure and Ulcerative Colitis

[expert on call]

I am 35 weeks pregnant with my third child. I had no problems with my first or second with high blood presssure. My pressure began to go up last week and over the past three days I have had a lot of swelling in my hands and face. Even my forearms are swollen and really sore from the tightness. I also have a constant dull headache in my temples across my eyes. My blood pressure is averaging 150/100. The highest it has gotten was 154/109. Even after resting all day it is still high. My doctor checked my urine and blood today and said everything was normal. I am 27 years old and I have ulcerative colitis. I have taken 20 mg of prednisone daily for over 2 years now and still am so I wondered if this would have anything to do with it. I really feel bad and I am having anxiety type hot flashes and night sweats. I am really confused as to why I would having these problems if everything checks out to be normal. Any help?



Jennifer C.

[expert on call]

This sounds very much like preeclampsia. It is unusual to have blood pressure and swelling without protein in the urine, but the overall picture is very concerning. Your doctor may want to do a urine collection for 24 hours to detect protein over a longer time period. This is much more accurate at diagnosing preeclampsia than the dipstick urines done in the office. It also may be necessary for you to be started on a blood pressure medication. Ulcerative colitis does not have any specific relationship to preeclampsia that we know of, so it is likely not a factor here.

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