Maternal serum lipid profile in pregnancies complicated by hypertensive disorders

Abstract

Plasma lipoprotein, cholesterol and triglycerides were determined in 34 hypertensive pregnant patients and in 17 healthy full term pregnant women. Pregnancy induced hypertension was diagnosed in 21 patients and chronic hypertension in the remaining 13 women. Serum triglyceride levels were significantly elevated in the hypertensive patients. This elevation was not influenced by either the severity or the etiology of the hypertension. The total cholesterol/HDL and the LDL/HDL ratios were significantly elevated in the severely hypertensive patients, and furthermore the LDL/HDL ratio was elevated in patients receiving anti-hypertensive treatment. The lipid profiles found in hypertensive pregnant patients could be associated with enhancement of pathological lipid deposition in predisposed vessels such as the uterine spiral arteries. Furthermore, the hypertriglyceridemia found in the hypertensive patients may be associated with the hypercoagulability reported in pregnancy induced hypertension.

Study of serum lipid profile in pregnancy induced hypertension

“…The VLDL-C level, as reported by some researchers, might rise upto 2.5 folds at term over the pre-pregnancy level (15,16). VLDL level further increase in PIH as evidenced in the present study in corroboration with those of other workers (9,10,15), perhaps due to increased VLDL lipoproteins which accumulate over the maternal vascular endothelium, particularly those of uterine and renal vessels (17). Further VLDL may cause injury to the endothelium, while a specific toxicity-preventing-activity-protein (the pI 5.6 form of plasma albumin) protects against the VLDL-induced injury in the pathogenic process of toxaemia (18).…”

“…In present study there was a significant fall in LDL-C : HDL-C in normal pregnant women as compared to nonpregnant women. LDL-C : HDL-C however increased significantly in eclamptic women as compared to normal pregnant women (6,10). On the contrary, HDL-C : VLDL-C continued to fall in both preeclampsia and eclampsia.…”

“…On the other hand TG : HDL-C increased significantly in PIH. Trend was slightly different in TC : HDL-C which decreased during pregnancy but increased significantly in both preeclampsia and eclampsia (10). Though the relevance of these rations in pregnancy and PIH is yet to be established, the significance of altered TC : HDL-C, TG : HDL-C and HDL-C : VLDL-C ratios cannot be overlooked as they indicate additional risks in PIH.…”

“…Increased TG, found in pregnancy induced hypertension, is likely to be deposited in predisposed vessels, such as the uterine spiral arteries and contributes to the endothelial dysfunction, both directly and indirectly through generation of small, dense LDL (9). Moreover, this hypertriglyceridemia may be associated with hypercoagulability (10). In our study, in contrast to normal pregnant women, the rise in serum TG was statistically significant (P<0.05) in preeclamptic patients, but not so significant in eclamptic patients (P>0.05).…”

Association of Lipid Profile and Uric Acid with Pre-Eclampsia of Third Trimester in Nullipara Women

“…VLDL levels were also found increased in pre-eclamptic in the studies conducted by Kokio et al, and Teichmann et al, this is probably due to increased VLDL lipoproteins which accumulate over the maternal vascular endothelium, particularly those of uterine and renal vessels. The VLDL-c level as reported by some researchers might increases upto 2.5 folds at term over the pre-pregnancy level [21,22].…”