Summary

A 31-year-old primigravida at 24 2/7 weeks of gestation presented with a 2-day history of diarrhoea and vomiting. On admission, her blood pressure was 160/100 mm Hg, increased for the first time during her pregnancy, but she had no further symptoms of preeclampsia such as proteinuria, oedema, headache, visual disturbance, hyperreflexia or right upper quadrant pain, and no personal or family history of chronic hypertension, renal disease or thromboembolic events. Laboratory findings were normal. Ultrasonography showed a reduced amniotic fluid index of 10 and a growth retarded fetus (below the tenth percentile for the expected weight). Doppler ultrasonography revealed an increased vascular resistance in the uterine arteries and . . .