[Comparison of the mean level of C3 and C4 complements in pre-eclamptic patients and normal pregnancy]

ABSTRACT

Hypertension is still an important cause of mortality in mother, fetus and neonate. Up to 25% of perinatal mortality in developing countries is due to hypertension. The role of immunologic factors in development of preeclampsia is increasing. Decreased level of C3 and C4 complements in preeclamptic patients has been documented in some studies. The goal of this study is to compare the level of C3 and C4 in patients with normal pregnancy versus those with pre-eclampsia. This cross-sectional study was performed during one year, among pregnant women with a gestational age of more than 20 weeks and blood pressure over 140/90 mmHg plus proteinuria over 300 mg in 24h-urine or over 30 mg/dl in random urine. We selected 23 preeclamptic cases and 34 controls. Mean level of C3 in pre-eclamptic patients was 98.8 +/- 25.82 mg/dl and 112.5 +/- 29.03 mg/dl in controls [p<0.005]. Mean level of C4 in preeclamptic patients was 27.9 +/- 10.62 mg/dl and 35 +/- 11.25 mg/dl in controls [p<0.05]. In this study, the level of C3 and C4 in pre-eclamptic patients was lower than in those without pre-eclamsia. It is suggested that decreased level of these complements can be considered as a predictive factor of preeclampsia. More studies are warranted in this field