Pregnant women with swollen hands and feet

Pregnant women will experience some pregnancy reactions to a greater or lesser extent during pregnancy. If this happens, pregnant women must not be too anxious or nervous. They must adjust their mentality. Only by staying calm can they make their mood better. If swelling of the hands and feet occurs, the cause must be found out. At this time, it may be due to compression of the veins, causing blood flow obstruction.

The main reason for swelling of the hands and feet is that the enlarged uterus during pregnancy compresses the veins, causing obstruction of venous return.

Causes of lower limb edema during pregnancy include:

1. After pregnancy, blood volume begins to increase gradually from 6 weeks, reaches a peak at 34 weeks, and remains at this level until two weeks after delivery, when it returns to pre-pregnancy levels. Blood volume can increase by about 40% compared to the non-pregnant period, so as blood volume increases, interstitial fluid will also increase.

2. Because when blood increases, the increase in plasma is greater than the increase in blood cells, etc., the blood components will be relatively diluted, and the relative concentration of plasma albumin will be lower than that in the non-pregnant period. Plasma albumin is the main component that maintains plasma osmotic pressure. Plasma osmolality is lower during pregnancy than during non-pregnancy. This makes it easy for water in the blood to penetrate into the interstitial fluid, causing lower limb edema.

3. After pregnancy, the uterus enlarges, which increases the pressure in the pelvis, thereby affecting the venous blood flow in the lower limbs. This is also one of the important reasons for lower limb edema. If the swelling during pregnancy is relieved after rest or sleep, it is physiological and there is no need to worry.

Edema will become more severe as the pregnancy progresses.

As the number of weeks of pregnancy increases, edema in pregnant women will become increasingly obvious. During the entire pregnancy, body fluid increases by 6-8 liters, of which 4-6 liters are extracellular fluid, which is stored in tissues and causes edema.

This phenomenon is quite common during pregnancy. The soles of the feet, ankles, and calves are the most common areas where edema occurs, and sometimes even the face may experience slight swelling. The closer to the due date, the more severe the swelling will be. If it is hot, the swelling will be more obvious.

Mild swelling is normal, but if it is accompanied by high blood pressure and proteinuria, the expectant mother is at risk of developing gestational hypertension and must undergo prenatal examinations and fully cooperate with the doctor.

●The “swelling” caused by being overweight means that the expectant mother has a big appetite, does not have a comprehensive diet, and does not effectively control her weight. In the later stages of pregnancy, she gains a lot of weight. Such expectant mothers just need to pay attention to their diet and not gain too much weight.

●Physiological edema is mainly caused by uterine compression. The enlarged uterus will compress the blood vessels from the heart through the pelvis to the legs. Poor blood and lymph circulation and poor metabolism lead to fluid accumulation in the leg tissues, which usually occurs at the ankles or below the knees. Pregnant women usually do not have obvious symptoms when they get up in the morning, but after standing for a long time during the day and reducing activity at night, edema symptoms will become more obvious around bedtime.

And the location of edema is different at different times of the day. If you raise your feet for 1 hour, the edema in your legs and ankles will be reduced.