Spotlight on Magnesium Sulfate for Pre-eclampsia and Eclampsia

This fact sheet is part of a series on Demand Generation for 13 Life-Saving Commodities: A Synthesis of the Evidence.

The second leading cause of maternal death worldwide is pre-eclampsia and eclampsia (PE/E). It’s most often detected through the elevation of blood pressure during pregnancy, which can lead to seizures, kidney and liver damage, and death, if untreated.

The risk that a woman in a developing country will die of PE/E is approximately 300 times higher than that for a woman in a developed country. Magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) is the most effective medication for the prevention and treatment of PE/E, yet remains underutilized. It is one of 13 underutilized commodities identified by the UN Commission on Life-Saving Commodities for Women’s and Children’s Health that if more widely accessed and properly used, could save the lives of more than six million women and children worldwide.

[Download] Spotlight on Magnesium Sulfate for Pre-eclampsia and Eclampsia

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