Some Causes and Features of Swelling During Late Pregnancy
Cause |
Common Features* |
Tests |
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Normal (physiologic) edema |
Similar and equal painless swelling (edema) in both legs that usually decreases when the woman lies on her left side |
A doctor’s examination |
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Swelling and pain in only one leg or calf Often tenderness, redness, and warmth in the affected area Sometimes risk factors for deep vein thrombosis If a blood clot travels to the lungs and blocks a blood vessel there (causing pulmonary embolism), chest pain and difficulty breathing |
Doppler ultrasonography of the affected leg to check for a blockage in the veins Sometimes a blood test to measure a substance released from blood clots (called d-dimer) If the woman has chest pain and difficulty breathing, CT of the chest or ventilation/perfusion (nuclear lung) scanning |
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Sometimes swelling in both feet and sometimes in the face and/or hands No tenderness, redness, or warmth in the swollen areas Sometimes headache, confusion, blurred vision, nausea or vomiting, or a reddish purple rash of tiny dots (which indicates bleeding in the skin) Sometimes risk factors for preeclampsia |
Measurement of blood pressure and the amount of protein in urine Blood tests |
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Swelling in one leg or calf and tenderness, redness, and warmth in the affected area Possibly pitting of the affected skin (resembling an orange peel) Often affecting a relatively small area Sometimes fever |
A doctor’s examination Sometimes ultrasonography to rule out deep vein thrombosis |
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*Features include symptoms and results of the doctor's examination. Features mentioned are typical but not always present. |
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