[Analysis of the causes of neonatal deaths at term in pregnancy induced hypertension patients].

OBJECTIVE

To study the neonatal developmental status, its causes of death and their possible correlation in women complicated with pregnancy induced hypertension (PIH).

METHODS

46 autopsies of neonatal death at term with PIH and their clinical data were collected. The developmental status was evaluated by body weight, body length, and the weights of lungs, kidneys, liver and brain. The causes of death were reviewed by the clinicopathologic findings.

RESULTS

The neonatal development features for mild PIH in term pregnancy approached to the normal levels of 37 to 38 gestation weeks. In the infants with moderate and severe PIH, the body weights, the weights of lungs and liver were significantly decreased in comparison with those of the mild PIH, respectively (P < 0.05), while the weights of kidneys and brain were not significantly decreased. The causes of death showed that pulmonary hypoplasia accounted for 23.9%, primary pulmonary atelectasis 10.9%, pulmonary hyaline membrane disease 21.7%, massive pulmonary hemorrhage 13.0%, the meconium aspiration 19.6% and others 10.9%. There was no difference in sex among the dead infants.

CONCLUSIONS

The PIH syndrome had retarded the process of fetal growth and development, and associated with the severity of PIH, mostly involving the lung and the liver. The pulmonary hypoplasia and immaturity were the primary causes for neonatal death in PIH women.