CLINICAL STUDIES ON VERATRUM ALKALOIDS

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Abstract
The primary disturbance responsible for toxemia of pregnancy remains unknown. The similarity to some of the effects of salt-retaining steroid hormones (edema, hypertension, and albuminuria) has led to speculation concerning the etiological role of these hormones. It has not, however, resulted in a logical preventative or treatment other than the long-practiced restriction of salt. Such a comparison serves to separate two major events in the sequence of toxemia. The first is the excessive retention of water and salt. The second is the development of generalized arteriolar vasospasm, with consequent increased peripheral resistance and elevated arterial pressure. In this connection it is of interest that the administration of cortisone to normal persons1 potentiates the vasoconstrictor response to physiological amounts of norepinephrine, thus illustrating the mechanism whereby a steroid hormone may cause hypertension. Whatever the primary unknown disturbance, most of the serious symptoms and many of the sequelae of toxemia appear