ABSTRACT
To determine whether preeclampsia and intrauterine growth retardation [IUGR] are associated with an increase in placental apoptosis. A prospective observational case-control study. Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Pathology, Kasr El-Aini Hospital, Cairo University. Forty pregnant women, between 37 and 40 weeks of gestation. Tissue specimens from 20 normal term placentae and each of 20 term placentae complicated by either preeclampsia [n=10] or IUGR [n=10] were analyzed after delivery. Apoptosis were quantified using light microscopy performed on hematoxylin and eosin stained placental tissue. Apoptotic index in the nuclei of cytotrophoblasts and syncytiotrophoblasts. Apoptosis was apparent in the nuclei of both cytorophoblasts and syncytiotrophoblasts. There was no significant difference in the apoptotic index in cytotrophoblast nuclei among normal term, preeclamptic term, and IUGR term placentae [p>0.05], whereas the apoptotic index of syncytiotrophoblast nuclei was significantly higher in preeclamptic term placentae [p=0.002] and IUGR term placentae [p=0.008] than that in normal term placentae. The apoptotic index of syncytiotrophoblast nuclei in preeclamptic and IUGR term placentae was significantly higher than that in normal term placentae. Further studies to determine factors responsible for regulating apoptosis of trophohlasts are recommended to provide new insight into understanding of the molecular basis of pathophysiology of the placentae complicated by either preeclampsia or IUGR