Undiagnosed preeclampsia can have deadly consequences for individuals going through pregnancy, as well as potentially serious side effects for the babies they are carrying. Both the physical consequences of a severe medical emergency triggered by preeclampsia that has been overlooked and therefore never properly treated, and the psychological outcomes of being ignored and dismissed by medical professionals, can lead to significant maternal trauma. The long-term effects, both physical and psychological, can continue to influence a woman’s healthcare access and personal outcomes for years to decades after the immediate danger has passed. After years of advocating for New Mexico patients and their rights, at Erin Marshall Law, we are familiar with the challenges mothers face in accessing competent medical care. Call our office at 505-218-9949 today to discuss your personal situation and make an appointment to review the legal options appropriate to your situation.
How Does Undiagnosed Preeclampsia Lead to Maternal Trauma?
Women often struggle to access adequate healthcare. Most medical training in the United States is focused on male patients, from anatomy and physiology to the effects of various medications on a patient’s endocrine system. Additionally, many women report what some have called “medical gaslighting”: a situation in which patients who are experiencing genuine symptoms of potentially serious conditions have their concerns dismissed. This gaslighting can be a direct cause of psychological trauma associated with healthcare environments, leading to a distrust of medical professionals and a reluctance to seek care. The dismissal of patient concerns that underlies gaslighting, on the other hand, causes delays in diagnosis and therefore in treatment. Undiagnosed preeclampsia can lead to life-threatening physical maternal trauma if the condition progresses to a medical emergency.
Summary of Maternal Trauma and Preeclampsia
Undiagnosed preeclampsia is a serious pregnancy-related condition that can lead to severe physical injury, psychological harm, and long-term maternal trauma when symptoms are overlooked or dismissed.
- Preeclampsia is a multisystem pregnancy disorder commonly associated with high blood pressure and proteinuria, and it may progress to life-threatening emergencies when not promptly identified and managed.
- Diagnostic delays may result from overlapping symptoms with typical pregnancies, gaps in provider training, communication failures, or the dismissal of patient-reported concerns, which can contribute to both physical harm and lasting psychological distress.
- Certain populations, including individuals with preexisting hypertension, autoimmune disease, multiple pregnancies, or those in underserved communities, face increased risk, with data indicating preventable care deficiencies in New Mexico and nationally.
This issue intersects with medical negligence, maternal health, and patient advocacy concerns addressed by Erin Marshall Law, which serves individuals throughout New Mexico in matters involving healthcare-related harm and patient rights.
What Is Preeclampsia?
Preeclampsia is a potentially serious pregnancy-related complication. Although preeclampsia is typically described in terms of its most readily apparent symptom, high blood pressure, the authors of a 2008 systematic review in BMJ Clinical Evidence explain that preeclampsia is in fact a “multisystem disorder.” The condition occurs only during pregnancy, and in addition to high blood pressure (hypertension) its typical symptoms include abnormal concentrations of protein in the patient’s urine (proteinuria), often indicative of a decline in kidney function that suggests damage to these crucial organs.
Some medical sources do not consider hypertension that begins before the 20th week of pregnancy to be sufficient for a diagnosis of preeclampsia; for instance, the MedlinePlus resource maintained by the United States federal government differentiates between three possible types of pregnancy-related high blood pressure conditions. Because many patients may find a review of the criteria MedlinePlus uses to draw these finer distinctions useful in understanding what to watch for in their own pregnancies and when it may be time to suspect undiagnosed preeclampsia, the three categories used federally are as follows:
- Preeclampsia: defined as high blood pressure that comes on suddenly after the 20th week of a pregnancy
- Gestational hypertension: high blood pressure that develops during the second half a pregnancy, but is not accompanied by the suite of concerning symptoms that distinguish preeclampsia
- Chronic hypertension: high blood pressure beginning before the 20th week of pregnancy, which may or may not have been present before the pregnancy itself
The “chronic hypertension” category is important to note because pre-pregnancy hypertension is one of the risk factors for developing preeclampsia. Because symptoms beyond high blood pressure may not always be noticeable until preeclampsia poses a serious threat to both maternal and fetal health, it is important for pregnant people diagnosed with chronic or gestational hypertension to watch for signs of undiagnosed preeclampsia.
Who Is at Risk for Developing Preeclampsia?
Anyone who becomes pregnant can develop preeclampsia. However, certain factors are associated with increased preeclampsia risk. Keep in mind that some of these factors may not be causes of preeclampsia; sometimes more than one condition can be common in patients who share similar medical characteristics, and it is not always possible to know whether one condition causes another, or whether two conditions are both caused by the same underlying patient characteristics. “Risk factors” can sometimes be causes of a medical condition such as preeclampsia, but they can also be simply an indication that a person who has one condition is more likely to have another (a person who crochets is more likely to also knit than a person in the general population who does not practice needlecrafts, but crocheting does not directly cause someone to take up knitting).
You may be more likely to develop preeclampsia during your pregnancy or postpartum recovery if:
- You are over 35 years of age
- You are classified as “obese”
- You were diagnosed with high blood pressure before becoming pregnant
- You have been diagnosed with gestational diabetes
- You have a history of autoimmune disease
- You are carrying more than one baby (e.g., twins)
Each risk factor has been linked independently to preeclampsia. As a general rule, the more risk factors an individual patient has, the more likely it is that the patient will develop preeclampsia. However, not all risk factors share an equally strong association with increased risk of preeclampsia (for instance, autoimmune disease has a stronger positive correlation with preeclampsia than does obesity), so a personal risk assessment is more complicated than simply adding together the number of risk factors present in a particular patient.
Reasons Preeclampsia May Be Missed or Misdiagnosed
As all too many women can attest, the medical profession is not always well-prepared to deal with female bodies. Even in fields such as obstetrics and gynecology, where accounting for the specificities of at least female reproductive biology would seem to be integral to the discipline, often there can be knowledge gaps, unfounded assumptions, and (perhaps the most frustrating of all) provider biases that delay diagnoses and hinder care.
With preeclampsia specifically, some of the common symptoms the Mayo Clinic lists for preeclampsia, such as headache, edema, and nausea with or without vomiting, are frequently found in “normal,” healthy pregnancies. Additionally, preeclampsia may produce no warning symptoms before reaching critical emergency levels, so a severe stroke can appear to come “out of nowhere,” not only to healthcare professionals but to the pregnant individual as well.
Management of Preeclampsia
Obviously, undiagnosed preeclampsia cannot be effectively managed, so getting a timely and accurate diagnosis is important to ensuring quality medical care. More than 20 years ago, the American Association of Family Physicians (AAFP) identified preeclampsia as the third-leading cause of pregnancy-related death, and recommended periodic screenings (e.g., through blood pressure measurements in combination with urine tests) throughout pregnancy.
More recently, a review of population data by the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) has found that, for the period 2005-2022, the most common cause of death among pregnant women in the United States was actually homicide, but deficiencies in access to medical care and in maternal medicine continue to present problems, and a complicated picture of the current state of maternal health. Some of the most heartbreaking patient narratives we hear at Erin Marshall Law involve maternal trauma that arises from the simple refusal of healthcare providers to take women’s health concerns seriously and perform the diagnostics essential to administering appropriate preventive care.
Risk of Undiagnosed Preeclampsia for New Mexico Mothers: Demographic Data
A 2025 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that 100% of pregnancy-related deaths among American Indian and Alaskan Native (AI/AN) women were preventable, with factors related to the quality of medical care women received constituting four of the top five causes of preventable pregnancy-related deaths in this demographic. These statistics would be troubling anywhere, but they hold particular importance in states like New Mexico, where Native American women make up a much higher percentage of the total population than in many other parts of the country.
Inadequate Communication
The data are concerning in a different way when all demographics are considered together: Population-wide, only 87% of pregnancy-related with identifiable causes were determined to have been preventable, but problems in women’s access to care, and the quality of care they received, accounted for a slightly higher percentage (roughly 37%) of maternal deaths, than in the AI/AN group. Contributing factors that, under the definitions used by the CDC’s Maternal Mortality Review Committees (MMRCs), indicate lack of information-sharing and communication between healthcare providers and patients, or between healthcare providers regarding patient care, were particularly common and troubling.
When Does Preeclampsia Occur?
Preeclampsia can occur at any point in pregnancy, but most often appears after the “halfway” point (around the 20th week), according to the Cleveland Clinic. Preeclampsia can also develop in the first few days after delivery, in which case the condition is called “postpartum preeclampsia.”
Contact a New Mexico Patient Advocate
Undiagnosed preeclampsia can be catastrophic, primarily because the lack of diagnosis means the treatments that can prevent preeclampsia from progressing to a medical emergency are not implemented until the patient has already suffered a severe medical crisis. The consequences of stroke and organ damage for the pregnant person, and of low birth weight and potentially other problems for the fetus, can be life-altering even when they are not fatal. Even in mothers who survive these medical events, the maternal trauma can be long-lasting and affect the course of the patient’s life.
If you suffered maternal trauma as a result of undiagnosed preeclampsia, you may have legal options for holding neglectful healthcare providers to account. In many cases, these legal actions can not only recover financial compensation for affected patients but also help to increase awareness in the medical community to prevent the same problems from impacting other mothers and their babies. Call 505-218-9949 today to connect with a member of our tireless and dedicated team at Erin Marshall Law.
Essential FAQs About Undiagnosed Preeclampsia
Listed below are some of the most common questions and answers pertaining to undiagnosed preeclampsia and maternal trauma.
What Is Preeclampsia?
Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-related condition marked by the sudden onset of high blood pressure, typically after the twentieth week of pregnancy. It often involves additional symptoms such as protein in the urine, indicating potential kidney involvement, and may affect multiple organ systems.
Why Is Undiagnosed Preeclampsia Dangerous?
When preeclampsia is not diagnosed, preventive monitoring and treatment may not occur. This delay can allow the condition to progress to medical emergencies such as stroke, organ damage, or other complications affecting both the pregnant individual and the baby.
How Can Undiagnosed Preeclampsia Lead to Maternal Trauma?
Maternal trauma may arise from both physical injury during a medical emergency and psychological harm linked to being ignored or dismissed by healthcare providers. These experiences can contribute to long-term anxiety, distrust of medical systems, and ongoing health challenges.
Who Is at Increased Risk for Developing Preeclampsia?
Although any pregnant individual may develop preeclampsia, a higher risk is associated with factors such as age over thirty-five, preexisting high blood pressure, gestational diabetes, autoimmune disease, obesity, or carrying multiple babies. Risk increases when multiple factors are present.
Why Is Preeclampsia Sometimes Missed or Misdiagnosed?
Some symptoms of preeclampsia, including headaches, swelling, and nausea, may resemble those of uncomplicated pregnancies. In other cases, the condition may produce few warning signs before reaching critical levels, complicating timely diagnosis.
Can Preeclampsia Occur After Delivery?
Yes, preeclampsia can develop in the days following childbirth, a condition known as postpartum preeclampsia. Monitoring after delivery remains important, particularly when risk factors or concerning symptoms are present.
How Can Erin Marshall Law Assist Individuals Affected by Undiagnosed Preeclampsia?
Attorneys at Erin Marshall Law work to ensure clients understand their rights and potential legal paths related to maternal trauma and healthcare negligence. Consider visiting with an experienced attorney at Erin Marshall Law to learn more about legal options that may be available under New Mexico law.
