[Significance & treatment of abnormal blood viscosities in pre-eclamptic patients (author's transl)]

Blood viscosity, a blood flow volume determinant, is one of the primary indicators of the state of pregnancy. The viscosity of peripheral veins was measured using a cone-plate viscometer (share rate 150 sec-1, 375 sec-1) and the results were utilized in comparisons between control and experimental groups to determine their importance to pre-eclamptic patients. Compared with values of 11 non-pregnant subjects (3.614 cp), 165 normal pregnancy cases had lower measurements during the entire term of pregnancy. The viscosity of these normal pregnant subjects decreased up to the 24th week, and increased thereafter. It is hypothesized that this results from the increased plasma volume of pregnant women. In severe pre-eclamptic subjects (3.508 cp), viscosity was significantly higher than in normal pregnancy cases. The natural decrease in peripheral blood flow resulting from elevated viscosity threatens the lives of both mother and fetus. Further analysis of clinical symptoms placed these 31 preeclamptic subjects in the conventional categories of hypertensive, proteinuric, and edematic. Viscosity measurements were highest for hypertensive (4.0059 cp), and lowest for edematic (2.7615 cp) and of intermediate value for proteinuric (3.2122 cp). To normalize these viscosities, the administration of dextran infusion therapy to hypertensive subjects and short-term furosemide therapy to edematic subjects was undertaken and brought considerable beneficial results.