Donna Metler wrote:
wrote in message
oups.com...
Okay, so with my rising bps I am wondering how high is too high,
and at

what level should I definitely just go deliver rather than arguing
with

anybody about waiting longer? I think I have both pre-existing
hypertension that was helped with the aldomet, and then PIH which
is
making my bp creep higher and higher. My platelets have also
dropped
some, but I have a platelet disorder, so not necessarily a sign of
pre-e. I do get hand and foot swelling, but no protein in urine or
other laboratory signs of pre-e.

So long as they continue to monitor you closely (and you continue to
monitor *yourself* closely) for those other signs. :-) I admit to
being a worrywart, though for good reason I think. The biggest concern
in your situation, I would think, would be that if things go downhill
rapidly, the standard solution is to get the baby out *now*, especially
since the situation can continue to worsen postpartum for some time --
and the platelets make a C-section a difficulty. On the plus side,
they'd have to be really serious about it to section you. :-)

I would not be terribly comfortable waiting much past a sustained
160/110 but I am not a doctor and only play one when I read Medline.
If your doctors are following along and aren't concerned, then unless
*you* have reason to become concerned other than that you have been
reading horror stories, like that your face is swelling and you haven't
peed for 6 hours, I would guess that they are convinced you are falling
within safe parameters.

150/100 isn't induction level for the perinatal center I went
through,
although if it's continually that high, more or different medication
may be
indicated. They only induce if there are other symptoms of damage in
the
mother or if the baby is showing signs of compromise. Have they done
a BPP
to check on fetal oxygen flow and growth?

Also, for monitoring your own situation at home, I'd watch for bubbles
after urinating (when you spill protein, the surface tension of your
urine changes) and for general agitation (a sign of hyperreflexia,
which can sometimes lead eclampsia.) Of course you should also do kick
counts.

FWIW, I was 220/116, which convinced OB triage people that they needed
to go get some more bp monitors because that one must have been broken.
But I did *not* just have high bp, but also just about every clinical
symptom of PE, all of which had spiked in the past week. (I'd had an
appointment with my midwife one week prior, at which point I'd a bp of
130/80 and trace protein on a dipstick and dependent swelling in the
ankles.)

--
C, mama to two year old nursling