Day 55  pf        9 am


Another day for celebrating! Weight still at 101 kg, 3 days in a row. I noticed today my feet are looking a little bit plump. See tomorrow, worry then.

BP continues its upward journey. 141/73 pulse 73 while the blood/glucose continues to thrill at 6.8 mmol/L.


On Thursday I was fixing a printer in the delivery ward of a large hospital. I over heard one of the nurses talk about a mother to be who had

"preeclampsia, a serious condition in which high blood pressure and protein in the urine develop after the 20th week of pregnancy"

 and they were worried. My second youngest daughter had to be induced last March because she had it severely and we were all very scared. That same week one of the check out women in the local supermarket died from it leaving 3 young children without their mummy poor things. I asked one of the staff if anybody knew what caused it yet but she didn't know. My daughters only pre existing condition that might have contributed to the disease was that this was her first birth. Nothing else. Really scary.

So. While writing this essay it occurred to me if allopurinol--- the cheapest and possibly best wonder drug there is for reducing uric acid--- and about 50 years old without any patents to limit its supply--could help.

Here's what I found at     http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3319018/

Abstract

Hyperuricemia is a common finding in preeclamptic pregnancies evident from early pregnancy. Despite the fact that elevated uric acid often pre-dates the onset of clinical manifestations of preeclampsia, hyperuricemia is usually considered secondary to altered kidney function. Increased serum uric acid is associated with hypertension, renal disease and adverse cardiovascular events in the non-pregnant population and with adverse fetal outcomes in hypertensive pregnancies. We hypothesize that an elevated concentration of uric acid in preeclamptic women is not simply a marker of disease severity but rather contributes directly to the pathogenesis of the disorder. Using epidemiological and experimental evidence, gained largely outside of pregnancy, we will propose pathogenic roles for uric acid in preeclamptic pregnancies. Uric acid's ability to promote inflammation, oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction will be highlighted with discussions of the potential impact on placental development and function and maternal vascular health.

Then this in the same research paper.

1.4. Uric Acid as a Pathogenic Vascular Factor

Evidence for a pathogenic role of uric acid is increasing. In the non-pregnant population hyperuricemia is an independent predictor of cardiovascular and renal disease in both the general population and in subjects with chronic hypertension [2]. Uric acid is also a marker for adverse cardiovascular events in patients with established cardiovascular disease [2].

Experimental studies also support a pathogenic role for uric acid. Rats rendered experimentally hyperuricemic through administration of oxonic acid, an uricase inhibitor, develop crystal-independent renal injury and vascular disease in addition to glomerular and systemic hypertension. Inhibiting elevations in uric acid pharmacologically with allopurinol, a xanthine oxidase inhibitor, prevented these changes [18].

Interesting uh.