[The Hellp syndrome: a frequent (?) obstetric emergency]

Preeclampsia is a multisystem disorder of pregnancy whose clinical presentation is related to the importance and the extent of maternal microvasculature damage. 16 patients with preeclampsia, thrombocytopenia (< 100,000/mm3), elevated liver enzymes and hemolysis are described. Weinstein in 1982 assigned the acronym of Hellp syndrome for this clinical presentation of preeclampsia. This syndrome was seldom recognized during the first years of the study but was diagnosed later on, in 1 pregnancy out of 600 parturitions and in 5% of preeclampsia in 1991. Two out of the patients developed eclamptic seizures. The mode of delivery was as follows: 9 out of 16 had an emergency Caesarean section; the 7 other patients had vaginal delivery after induction of labor. Delivery occurred before 32 weeks of gestation for 6 out of 17 newborns. Outcome was good for 14 of the 17 newborns (one twin pregnancy). Two fetuses died: one in utero and one during interruption of the pregnancy at 24 weeks of gestation. A small for gestational age preterm of 32 weeks died on his second day of life. Early diagnosis of Hellp Syndrome, especially when abdominal pains are present, allows a prompt management of these patients, including delivery, which appeared in our experience, the only way to avoid fetomaternal complications. The thrombotic microangiopathics and acute fatty liver of pregnancy are potential imitations of Hellp syndrome and they must be considered for differential diagnosis. The frequency of Hellp Syndrome varies from one study to another. It can be increased up to 6 fold if referred to the number of pregnancies and up to 3 fold if referred to the number of preeclampsias. These differences can be real but may be due to bias related to differences in practice between centers and also differences in definitions of Hellp Syndrome and preeclampsia.