Southend Hospital plays key role in pre-eclampsia study

Southend Hospital has played a leading role in a new study into the effectiveness of aspirin in reducing the chances of pregnant women developing pre-eclampsia.

Results, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, revealed a daily 150mg aspirin dose reduces the pre-eclampsia risk by 82% in deliveries before 34 weeks' gestation.

Pre-eclampsia occurs in nearly one in 10 pregnancies in the UK and it can lead to significant harm to mothers and babies. There is no treatment so the main aim is to manage blood pressure and deliver babies at the right time.

Fetal Maternal Medicine Consultant Mr Mandeep Singh said: "Southend Hospital was one of the few centres in UK that participated in the study. We screened almost 91% of the pregnancy population in Southend, which was the highest in any centre taking part in the study across the world."