[Types of hypertension in pregnant women of Benin admitted to the National University Hospital of Cotonou].

We carried out a retrospective and prospective study between January 1995 and August 1996, of pregnant women with high blood pressure. The aim of this work was to determine the prevalence of each type of hypertension according to the classification of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and to evaluate the prognosis for the mother and child. The prevalence of hypertension in pregnancy was found to be 7.65%. A family history of hypertension, obesity and a personal history of hypertension in pregnancy were all risk factors. Severe hypertension (diastolic blood pressure (DBP) > 110 mm Hg) affected 59.4% of the women. Chronic hypertension occurred in 41.51% of cases, preeclampsia in 26.41% of cases, associated preeclampsia in 18.87% of cases and isolated hypertension in 13.21% of cases. Eclampsia (70.6%) was the principal maternal complication in this study population. Fifty-four of the women gave birth to normal babies, 21 to hypotrophic babies, 15 gave birth prematurely and 3 had miscarriages. Six of the seven deaths involved women with DBP above 110 mm Hg.