Open AccessAmniotic Fluid Phospholipid Concentrations in Pregnancies with Pre‐Eclampsia and/or Intrauterine Growth‐Retardation of the Fetus
Author(s) -
Skjæraasen Julie
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
acta obstetricia et gynecologica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.401
H-Index - 102
eISSN - 1600-0412
pISSN - 0001-6349
DOI - 10.3109/00016347909154581
Subject(s) - amniotic fluid , medicine , preeclampsia , gestation , respiratory distress , growth retardation , eclampsia , obstetrics , fetus , fetal distress , lecithin , placenta , pregnancy , gynecology , surgery , biology , genetics , biochemistry
. Amniotic fluid lecithin/sphingomyelin (L/S) ratios were examined in 74 samples from 65 patients with preeclampsia. The median values were comparable to those obtained in a reference series up to 36 weeks of gestation, whereas the median values after 37 weeks of gestation were found to be significantly smaller in the preeclamptic group (p<0.01). According to the present results a L/S ratio 2 would in fact guarantee no development of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in the infants of preeclamptic mothers. On the contrary L/S ratios s 1.6 may be of limited predictive value in these women since only Vy of the children developed RDS. When preeclampsia was combined with intrauterine growth‐retardation of the fetus, RDS was found to be less apt to develop. In 21 samples of amniotic fluid from 13 women with idiopathic intrauterine growth‐retardation of the fetus the L/S ratios were significantly below those in the reference series (p<0.05). No case of RDS was observed.