The influence of smoking on the haemostatic mechanism in pregnancy.

ABSTRACT

PIP: During pregnancy, 12 women who smoked more than 10 cigarettes/day and 12 nonsmokers had blood taken and analyzed at 12, 20, 25, 30, 34, and 38 weeks of gestation. Fibrinogen, plasminogen, plasminogen activator, serum fibrin degradation products, antithrombin 3, alpha 1 antitrypsin, and alpha 2 macroglobulin were measured. The only significant (p .05) difference was that plasma fibrinogen was lower among smokers at 20 weeks. However, there were other patterns of difference -- mean fibrinogen and plasminogen levels were slightly lower throughout pregnancy and reached a lower peak in the smoking group. Fibrinolytic activity fell in the smokers to the same low level as in nonsmokers by 38 weeks, but at a slower rate. Serum fibrin degradation products and alpha 2 macroglobulin were consistently higher in the smoking group. Although the findings showed no major disseminated intravascular coagulation in smokers, there was a pattern of a possible low-grade syndrome.