Haemostatic and rheological changes in normal pregnancy and pre‐eclampsia

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Abstract
Platelet activity (microaggregate formation, ADP‐aggregation and β‐thromboglobulin release), coagulation activity (fibrinogen level and factor VIII related antigen/coagulant activity), and rheological factors (plasma viscosity, whole‐blood viscosity and erythrocyte deformability) were studied serially in 14 healthy pregnancies to determine the effect of gestational age. Fourteen patients with pre‐eclampsia, each matched for stage of gestation with a normal pregnancy, showed normal rheology of circulating blood and normal aggregability of circulating platelets, but there was a significant increase in platelet release of β‐thromboglobulin and a shorter platelet production time, indicating a shorter life‐span. The results suggest that localized platelet activation within the utero‐placental microvasculature, rather than a rheological abnormality, is a likely contributory factor to the occlusive vascular lesion of pre‐eclampsia and fetal growth retardation.