were included in the study. The diagnosis of preeclampsia was confirmed using the “Report of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ Task Force on Hypertension in Pregnancy” criteria. Based on these criteria, patients with systolic blood pressure ≥140 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mmHg (measured after a period of rest of four hours, twice daily) and proteinuria (≥300 mg protein/24 h) were diagnosed as preeclampsia [14].