PIH vs PE @ 31 Weeks Preg

[littlebbigb]

Hi! I am new to the board and new to this baby making stuff.

I am 38 years old and this is my first pregnancy. I had gained a lot of weight over the last year due to undiagnosed hypothyroidism. Within two weeks of starting my synthroid, I got pregnant, so I never got a chance to lose the weight.

Before the pregnancy, my bp had started to creep up as I packed on the pounds but it was in the high 130's/ high 70's.
It maintained itself throughout the first few weeks of the pregnancy and then started creeping up little by little.
I was placed on Labetelol around the 20th week, maybe a little sooner and it went down to around 117/69 ish for a good 8 weeks.

From the 30th week on it has slowly started to creep back up and my MD has made me come in for weekly checks and 2-24 hour urine test. 24 hour urines have been in the 250's.

On Thursday I was in for my routine visit and I was admitted to L&D with talk of stroke prevention. I still don't know my BP because I was sent to L&D so quickly. All my lab work came back normal and my 24 hour urine came back at 280.
They doubled my Labetelol and my bp has been maintaining in the normal range. I am on bed rest and feeling much better.

My question is: Is it normal in PIH for Labetelol to maintain for a certain amount of time and then have to be increased? Is my bp rising because of my body weight and blood volume increasing?

OR

Is this just the beginning of PE and it will just be a waiting game as to how long we can keep this baby in here?

The good news is that my MD is taking this very seriously and has me coming back in for weekly visits.

[angieb]

It could be PIH, it could be the beginning of pre-e, it could be that you are a chronic hypertensive unmasked by pregnancy. The diagnostic criteria for preeclampsia is 2 readings of 140/90 or over, and 300 mg of protein in a 24 hour urine. At 280 mg, you aren't far from that, though it can fluctuate and if you did another 24 hr, it might be lower next time.

What it isn't, unfortunately, is caused by your weight or blood volume. If that were the case, most women would have high bp in pregnancy. I weighed 20 lbs more starting my pregnancy with DS, which was healthy, vs. my nightmare pregnancy with dd.

I'm glad they are watching you closely. In your shoes, I'd be watching my blood pressure at home too, if you aren't already.

Some women can limp along on bp meds and bedrest for a long time/until delivery without too much drama, other women can limp along for awhile and then suddenly get worse. What you are experiencing sounds pretty typical in terms of this forum, though.

Sorry you had to find this website but welcome!

[hillary8l8]

I am a chronic hypertensive as well, and my blood pressures did follow the same pattern. Mine were mildly elevated before pregnancy, went down through most of my first and second trimester, and have been creeping higher and higher the further into the third trimester that I get. I believe they call it the second trimester "dip". My Labetalol dose also had to be increased when my BPs went up in the third trimester. But your 24 hour urines are creeping up as well, so it definitely could be the start of Pre-e, so it is great that they are keeping such a close eye on you. That's the stinky thing about this disease is you just don't know what's going to happen, it's so unpredictable. Just be vigilant for any new symptoms, and I will be praying that you are able to stay controlled and have a healthy full term baby:)

[littlebbigb]

Thank you Angie and Hillary! This site can be scary yet informative. I tell everyone who will listen that having a baby is nothing to take for granted. Also, having a baby in your late 30's and 40's is not as easy as the media portrays it.
I used to laugh at my md friends who would tell me to get on it when I was in my late 20's.

Hillary, did you feel gross when they increased your Labetelol? I just feel sickly. My bp is great (126/76) but I feel terrible.