If a pregnant woman has at the same time considerable albumen in her urine and a low excretion of urea, her condition is very dangerous. To empty her uterus will, in most cases, relieve the renal trouble, but in any case premature labour is not to be induced rashly: many women escape, when by all the rules they should die. Eclampsia is a very grave complication of pregnancy, and it was formerly supposed to be uraemia. The disease is characterized by convulsions, loss of consciousness, and coma. It occurs, commonly, in the second half of gestation, but it has been observed as early as the third month. About 70 to 80 per centum of the cases are in primiparous women. The convulsions may come on altogether unexpectedly, but commonly the attack begins with symptoms of toxaemia. Eclampsia may occur before, during, or after parturition. When it comes before term it usually ends in spontaneous or artificial abortion, but at times the woman dies undelivered. Now and then she may recover and be delivered at term. The kidneys are usually affected, even in those cases in which albuminous urine is not found. There is also a hemorrhagic inflammation of the liver; and oedema and congestion of the brain, with or without apoplexy, are other symptoms of the disease. There are other lesions, but the chief are in the kidneys, liver, and brain. The aetiology of the disease is not yet known, and there are very many theories offered to explain it. The prognosis is always serious, and the condition is one of the most dangerous found in pregnancy. The mortality varies, but it is about from 20 to 25 per centum in the women, and from 33 to 50 per centum in the children. It is impossible to determine {53} the prognosis in particular cases, but a large number of quickly recurring convulsive seizures, with a weak, thready pulse, and a high temperature usually indicate a fatal ending. Apoplexy, oedema of the lungs, and paralysis also, as a rule, end in death. If the uterus is emptied during the convulsions, these cease either immediately or soon after delivery, in from 66 to 93 per centum of the cases, and the maternal mortality then is about 11 per centum. With the expectant treatment, in convulsive cases, about 28 per centum of the women die, although a use of aconite in these cases may better the prognosis. Pernicious vomiting (hyperemesis gravidarum) is another complication of pregnancy, which sometimes results fatally if the uterus is not emptied. There are cases, especially those with high fever, which end in death despite all treatment. Here, again, the aetiology of the disease is not known. There is commonly an element of hysteria in the condition, and in such a case moral suggestion often has a curative effect Any bodily irritation is to be removed. Eye-strain alone is enough to cause persistent vomiting. It is very difficult to decide when premature labour is absolutely indicated, because some very bad cases recover spontaneously when all hope is lost.