The maternal syndrome of preeclampsia has previously been ascribed to generalized
maternal endothelial cell dysfunction. In this review we suggest that the endothelial
dysfunction is a part of a more generalized intravascular inflammatory reaction involving
intravascular leukocytes as well as the clotting and complement systems. We provide
evidence from our recent work and that of others that not only supports this proposal but
indicates that such an inflammatory response is already well developed in normal …