[Toxemie of pregnancy and magnesium]

As the understanding for the mechanism of absorption and metabolism has not been clarified adequately, a lot of works about these issues are still carrying on. Changes in maternal blood and intracellular magnesium concentration during the early stage of pregnancy suggest magnesium may play important roles around the period of implantation. Alternation in absorption of the mineral from colon, in levels of maternal blood and those of intracellular magnesium, or in urinary excretion of magnesium during pregnancy suggest that contents of magnesium in the whole maternal body tend to be decreased with the course of pregnancy. On the other hand, in preeclamptic women lack of magnesium is existed showing a pathological level compared to normal pregnant women. The magnesium deficiency is speculated to have a relation with vascular hypertonus or eclamptic seizures. Magnesium sulfate is frequently used for first choice drug, as it is effective to improve the hypertension of preeclampsia, to prevent or to cure the seizures of eclampsia. The administration of magnesium sulfate to preeclamtic women is reasonable to improve magnesium deficiency, which may be one of pathophysiological aspects of preeclampsia.