Together, preeclampsia and eclampsia are among the top
three causes of maternal death globally.1 Ninety-nine
percent of these maternal deaths occur in low and middle
income countries, in which 10% to 25% of maternal deaths
are due to preeclampsia or eclampsia.2 The major burden
of maternal death is in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia,
where the risk of death is nearly 200 times greater than in
high income countries.3 In addition to their catastrophic
impact on mortality rates, preeclampsia and eclampsia
cause life-threatening and life-altering morbidities that
increase the burden of these diseases substantially in both
high and low income countries.2
Preeclampsia is traditionally defined as new hypertension
(diastolic BP ≥ 90 mm Hg) and significant proteinuria in
women at ≥ 20 weeks’ gestation. Preeclampsia is thought
to be a pregnancy- and placenta-specific form of systemic
inflammation that affects multiple organ systems.4 One
of the most severe and characteristic complications of
preeclampsia is eclampsia, defined as the occurrence of one
or more tonic-clonic seizures in the presence of symptoms