P-23 Pre-eclampsia prevalence and associated maternal and neonatal outcomes: a retrospective study at West Demerara Regional Hospital (2023)

Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted at West Demerara Regional Hospital from January 1 to December 31, 2023. All obstetric admissions were screened, and medical records meeting predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria were reviewed. Data extracted included maternal demographic characteristics, clinical presentation, maternal complications, mode of delivery, and neonatal outcomes. Pre-eclampsia was identified based on established diagnostic criteria. Descriptive statistics were applied, and results were summarized as frequencies and percentages using Microsoft Excel and SPSS version 26.

Results: Among 1,549 obstetric admissions reviewed, 48 cases met diagnostic criteria for pre-eclampsia, yielding a prevalence of 3.1%. The majority of affected patients were aged 20–29 years (54.2%; n=26), and the largest ethnic group was categorized as ”Other” (37.5%; n=18). The most commonly documented presenting symptoms were edema (45.8%; n=22) and persistent headache (38.6%; n=18). Maternal complications included acute kidney injury (6.3%; n=3), placental abruption (6.3%; n=3), and eclampsia (2.1%; n=1); no maternal deaths occurred. Spontaneous vaginal delivery was the most frequent mode of delivery (47.9%; n=23). Neonatal outcomes indicated that 72.9% (n=35) of infants were delivered at term, 50.0% (n=24) had normal birth weight, 22.4% (n=11) required neonatal intensive care, and the stillbirth rate was 8.3% (n=4).

Conclusion: Pre-eclampsia accounted for 3.1% of obstetric admissions at West Demerara Regional Hospital in 2023 and was associated with maternal complications and adverse neonatal outcomes. These findings indicate that pre-eclampsia remains a clinically significant contributor to maternal and neonatal morbidity in Region 3, Guyana.