The importance of early laboratory screening methods for maternal and fetal outcome in cases of HELLP syndrome.
Over a period of 5 years and 3 months 50 patients with HELLP syndrome were treated at our hospitals. All of these patients fulfilled the criteria of this syndrome described by Weinstein. Pre-eclampsia with HELLP syndrome was either diagnosed correctly by the referring doctor or on admission by the obstetrician on the basis of the laboratory findings. The median time interval between admission and delivery was 3 hours (range: 0.5-40 hours). In 49 patients, Caesarean section was performed, one patient developed a HELLP syndrome 18 hours after vaginal delivery. The median gestational age at delivery was 35 weeks (range: 26-40). Only three of 51 infants died before delivery, and there was one neonatal death, resulting in a perinatal mortality of 7.8%. Apgar scores below 7 occurred in 15 of the newborns after 1 min and in only 2 after 5 min. In 47 cases, Caesarean section and hospital course were free of complications; in three patients postoperative hemorrhages required relaparotomy, in two of these patients puerperal hysterectomy had to be performed. In our experience, the relevant laboratory parameters should be determined in any pregnant women with right upper quadrant pain independent of the severity of pre-eclampsia in order to diagnose HELLP syndrome as soon as possible. Both early control and follow-up of the laboratory parameters and immediate delivery--by Caesarean section, if necessary--may lead to a reduction of maternal mortality and morbidity and to an improvement of perinatal results.