HELLP Syndrome and Your Pregnancy

What is HELLP syndrome?

HELLP syndrome is a rare but serious illness in pregnancy. This illness can start quickly,
most often in the last 3 months of pregnancy (the third trimester). It can also start soon after
you have your baby. HELLP stands for Hemolysis, Elevated Liver enzyme levels and a Low
Platelet count. These are problems that can occur in women with this syndrome.
Women with HELLP syndrome may have bleeding problems, liver problems and blood
pressure problems that can hurt both the mother and the baby.
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Who gets HELLP syndrome?

We don't know the cause of HELLP syndrome. We also don't know who will get it. Any
pregnant woman may get this illness.
Most women who will get HELLP have blood pressure problems before they get HELLP
syndrome. (But you can get HELLP syndrome even if your blood pressure is normal.)
You're more likely to get HELLP syndrome if you're white and over 25 years of age. You are
also more likely to get it if you have had children before or if you had a problem with a
pregnancy in the past.
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How can I tell if I have HELLP syndrome?

If you have HELLP syndrome, you may feel tired. You may have pain in the upper right part
of your belly. You may have bad headaches and nausea or vomiting. You may have swelling,
especially in your face and hands. Rarely, you may notice bleeding from your gums or other
places.
Because many healthy pregnant women also have these symptoms late in pregnancy, it may
be hard to know for sure if you have HELLP syndrome. Your doctor may order blood tests if
you have these symptoms or if your blood pressure is high.
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How is HELLP syndrome treated?

The main treatment for HELLP is to deliver your baby. This may have to be done before your
due date. Most women with this illness start to get better a couple of days after their babies
are born.

If you aren't too sick, your doctor may wait a few days before delivering your baby.
You may have to take a steroid. This medicine helps both you and your baby.
If you have bleeding, you may need blood transfusions or other treatments in the hospital.
Some women with HELLP syndrome get very sick. Rarely, this illness is fatal.
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What can I do to prevent HELLP syndrome?

There is no way to prevent this illness. The best thing you can do is see your doctor regularly
and tell your doctor about your symptoms at every prenatal visit.
If you have HELLP syndrome during one pregnancy, you can have it again during your next
pregnancy. The illness is usually less severe the second time.
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High Blood Pressure During Pregnancy

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Bleeding in Early Pregnancy

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Source
Written by familydoctor.org editorial staff.
HELLP Syndrome: Recognition and Perinatal Management by Maureen O'Hara Padden,
LCDR, MC, USN (American Family Physician September 1, 1999,
http://www.aafp.org/afp/990901ap/829.html)
Reviewed/Updated: 12/09
Created: 09/00
Copyright 2000-2010 American Academy of Family Physicians
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Successful strategies for the prevention of parent to child transmission of HIV: A study.
Nasreen S; International Conference on AIDS (15th : 2004 : Bangkok, Thailand).
Int Conf AIDS. 2004 Jul 11-16; 15: abstract no. B11172.
Society for upliftment of rural areas, Tirupati-517502, India
The focus of this paper is on the successful strategies tried for the prevention of parent -tochild transmission (PPTCT) of HIV among women in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India.
Parent-To-Child Transmission (PTCT) of HIV accounts for less than 1 per cent of all HIV
infections (0.73 per cent). Nevertheless, the population being large, numerically,
approximately 32,000 children are infected with HIV each year (UNICEF, 2001)Indian data
on Sero-prevalence indicates that in the 6 states more than 1 percent of antenatal women are
already HIV infected (NACO, 2001. Therefore, there is an urgent need to devise suitable HIV
prevention programmes for women and children in India. Andhra Pradesh (A. P.) where the
present study was conducted, has the dubious distinction of having the second highest
number of HIV - positive persons in India. There are 400,000 HIV-positive persons living in
the state which accounts for 10 per cent of the national HIV infections. In view of this, the
Government of Andhra Pradesh launched in 2002 a programme in the state titled "Prevention
of Parent-to-Child Transmission (PPTCT) of HIV" to Prevent Mother-to-Child Transmissio in
the state. The PPTC of HIV programme interventions are: 1. Primary prevention of HIV /
AIDS in the community 2. Comprehensive MCH Services, 3. Voluntary Counseling and
Testing, (VCT) 4. 'Antiretroviral' Therapy (ARV) 5. Counselling and Support for Safe Infant
Feeding, and 6. Optimal obstetrical practices. "Neviripine" is being administered on HIVpositive pregnant women and children to prevent MTCT of HIV. This programme is still in
progress. As part of this study, PCR test is being conducted on the children from October
2003 onwards, after each child completes 18 months of age. This large scale study is
expected to throw more light on the effectiveness of a single dose NVP. The details are
discussed in the full length paper. The interventions helped to prevent MTCT of HIV. These
interventions are worth replicating in most of the developing countries where similar situation
exists.

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Meeting Abstracts

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