Toxemia of pregnancy: cerebral CT findings.

Four patients with pregnancy-induced hypertension (preeclampsia-eclampsia) and neurological dysfunction unrelated to intracranial hemorrhage, cerebral venous thrombosis, or preexisting neurological disorder had cranial CT performed during their hospitalization. Three patients had diffuse white matter hypodensities with associated mass effect. The fourth patient had bilateral, asymmetric hypodensities confined to the basal ganglia. Computed tomography is useful in establishing an early diagnosis of the complicating neurological disorder as well as in providing a better understanding of the physiopathological changes seen in the brain in this condition.