Latest scientific publication: Can reproductive medicine help to understand the aetiopathogenesis of pre-eclampsia?

The medical journal “Medicina Reproductiva y Embriología Clínica” has just published a study by the Instituto Bernabeu led by Dr Francisco Sellers.

This article highlights several coincidences between pre-eclampsia and some of the events present in what is known as reproductive medicine.

Pre-eclampsia is probably the most worrying obstetric complication owing to its repercussions, sometimes very serious, for both the mother and the foetus. It is always caused by the pregnancy itself but its real production mechanism has yet to be fully resolved.

However, according to the latest studies, it is believed that the intimate origin of this pathology lies in an imperfect placentation, together with multiple factors: genetic, hormonal, immunological, inflammatory, metabolic and vascular. All of these factors are likewise involved in the correct implantation of the embryo.

Therefore, any pregnancy achieved after assisted reproduction treatments is considered a risk factor for the appearance of pre-eclampsia.

¿Puede la medicina reproductiva ayudar a comprender la etiopatogenia de la preeclampsia? Francisco Sellers López, Ll. Aparicio Aparicioy Rafael Bernabeu Pérez.Medicina Reproductiva y Embriología Clínica (2016) 3, 1-3