CALCIUM AND VITAMIN-D STATUS OF PREGNANT TEENAGERS IN MAIDUGURI, NIGERIA

This study investigates parameters related to calcium and bone metabol ism by determining the concentrations of total calcium, 25-hydroxyvita min D, 1, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D, parathyroid hormone, and phosphorous in young pregnant women. The patient population was 30 pregnant Nigeri an teenage women grouped by trimester (10 per group), 10 women immedia tely following delivery, and 21 healthy age-matched controls. On the b asis of serum prealbumin levels, the general nutrition of the pregnant women was found to be significantly below that of the more privileged and better-educated nonpregnant controls. The mean total calcium conc entration in sera of the third-trimester women was 8.83 mg/dL, which w as significantly below that of the controls (9.77 mg/dL) and the first -trimester group (9.30 mg/dL). Despite the 10% to 15% decline in the s erum level of total calcium during pregnancy, the parathyroid hormone level decreased markedly from 0.60 to 0.61 ng/mL in the first and seco nd trimesters to 0.41 ng/mL in the third trimester. Serum vitamin D an d 1, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D levels in the second and third trimesters w ere within the normal range. These data indicate that toward the end o f gestation, pregnant teenagers in northern Nigeria appear to become c alcium deficient and do not exhibit the expected increase in serum par athyroid hormone levels normally seen in pregnant women.