Recent Experience with a New Classification of Pregnancy Complicated by Hypertension and Albuminuria

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We present a preliminary report of eighteen months’ study of patients passing through the reorganized toxemia clinic of the Boston Lying-In Hospital. We have used a new classification aimed to be all-inclusive when necessary by cross-indexing (Table 1). It has for its primary concept the division of all cases into two great groups: (A) Those presenting certain or presumptive evidence of disease independent of pregnancy; (B) those presenting no such evidence. Group A is classified on the basis of the Volhard and Fahr classification of the nephropathies, modified to suit our idea of the needs in pregnancy. This is not our original classification,8but experience led us to accept it as most satisfactory. Group B is the commonly accepted one of preeclampsia and eclampsia (well called the “eclamptic state” to emphasize identity) with a debatable group called preeclampsia Grade l. We have discussed the limitations of this group. We present a preliminary report of eighteen months’ study of patients passing through the reorganized toxemia clinic of the Boston Lying-In Hospital. We have used a new classification aimed to be all-inclusive when necessary by cross-indexing (Table 1). It has for its primary concept the division of all cases into two great groups: (A) Those presenting certain or presumptive evidence of disease independent of pregnancy; (B) those presenting no such evidence. Group A is classified on the basis of the Volhard and Fahr classification of the nephropathies, modified to suit our idea of the needs in pregnancy. This is not our original classification,8but experience led us to accept it as most satisfactory. Group B is the commonly accepted one of preeclampsia and eclampsia (well called the “eclamptic state” to emphasize identity) with a debatable group called preeclampsia Grade l. We have discussed the limitations of this group.