MATERNAL AND CORD SERUM VITAMIN-E LEVELS IN NORMAL AND ABNORMAL PREGNANCY

The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether there is an associa tion between reduced vitamin E levels and an abnormal pregnancy. Level s were measured by HPLC in maternal and, where possible, in paired umb ilical cord serum from normal and abnormal pregnancies at delivery and in serial serum samples from healthy women during gestation. Abnormal pregnancies were compared with normals. In normal pregnancies, mean v itamin E levels rose from 12.9 +/- 1.1 mu g/ml in early pregnancy to 22.5 +/- 1.5 mu g/ml at term (p < 0.05, n = 11). In pregnancies with fetal complications or maternal risks, levels were lower than in norma ls at corresponding gestational age (p < 0.005 in smokers, n = 20 at g reater than or equal to 30 weeks & p < 0.01 in hypertensives, n = 4 at 16-23 weeks). Mean maternal and paired cord serum levels in normal pr egnancies at delivery greater than or equal to 37 weeks were 21.3 +/- 0.6 and 3.8 +/- 0.1 mu g/ml respectively (p < 0.001, n = 56). Materna l levels in women with a low birthweight infant and in smokers (> 10 c ig/day) were significantly lower (p < 0.05, n = 13 & p < 0.0005, n = 1 2); levels in women with a malformed infant (n = 6) were also reduced, but just barely below the level of significance (p = 0.06). Cord seru m levels in complicated pregnancies, however, were unchanged. The resu lts show lower maternal levels of vitamin E in abnormal pregnancies, s uggesting a changed vitamin E metabolism.