Maternal hypertension and intrauterine fetal death in mid-pregnancy

Summary An analysis of the 156 pregnancies which terminated spontaneously between 16 and 27 weeks gestation, inclusive, indicated that in 41 patients where fetal death was the primary event, maternal arterial pressure was raised in early pregnancy when compared with matched groups of women whose pregnancies had a successful outcome. Blood pressure in the 14th week of pregnancy in women with fetal death was significantly higher than in women with other types of mid-trimester abortion. It is suggested that maternal hypertension predisposes to intrauterine fetal death in the mid-trimester of pregnancy as it does in the third trimester.