Pregnancy is not associated with altered morphology of the femoral artery

While pregnancy is associated with adjustments in cardiovascular function, the morphology of the vascular system during pregnancy has been generally v iewed as being very stable. However, recently we have demonstrated that pre gnancy remodels the aorta and the carotid artery. In the present study, we assessed the morphological characteristics of the guinea-pig femoral artery during different stages of pregnancy using light and electron microscopy. There were no significant differences between external and internal diamete rs, wall thickness, total cross-sectional area and cross-sectional areas of lumen, intima, media, and adventitia of femoral arteries from non-pregnant and early-, mid- and late-pregnant guinea-pigs (n = 8-10), In previous stu dies, we have shown that the morphology of vascular smooth muscle and endot helial cells in the aorta and the carotid artery may be altered by pregnanc y. Therefore, to test this possibility we measured diameters as well as cro ss-sectional areas of femoral arterial muscle and endothelial cells using e lectron microscopy. These parameters, at the electron microscopy level, wer e also not significantly changed by pregnancy (n = 8-10). It is concluded t hat the morphology of the guinea-pig femoral artery is not altered during p regnancy. In this regard, this study demonstrated that pregnancy-induced va scular remodelling varies between blood vessels that undergo the same funct ional alterations, Therefore, this may suggest that pregnancy-induced chang es in blood flow through different vascular beds are not the most important factor involved in vascular remodelling observed during pregnancy. Rather, it is possible that haemodynamic-independent factors regulate pregnancy-me diated structural changes of the vascular wall.