Some ophthalmological observations in toxaemic and normal late pregnancy.

Abstract

Abstract. Various ocular fundus findings recorded by means of ophthalmoscopy and fluorescein angiography of the fundus towards the end of pregnancy in 11 healthy pregnant women and 13 patients with toxaemia of varying degree were analysed. Ten healthy non‐pregnant women formed the control group. The results showed that: (1) The healthy pregnant women showed both normal ocular fundi and changes which must be considered definitely pathological. (2) The toxaemic patients showed both pathological ocular fundus changes and perfectly normal findings. (3) On angiography, the healthy non‐pregnant women revealed a wide variation in the arterial caliber of the ocular fundus, expressed in terms of the artery/vein (A/V) ratio. (4) Variations of roughly the same degree in the A/V ratio occurred in the healthy and toxaemic pregnant women. (5) The A/V ratio was not correlated with the clinical status.