Biochemical Profiling Study in Umbilical Cord Blood as Predictors of Neonatal Damage

Abstract

Background: During pregnancy inflammatory, metabolic and immunologic disorders that affect differently the fetus, are known. These could be early disorders: abortion, intrauterine growth retardation, low birth weight and neonatal death; or late disorders: cardiovascular and metabolic disease in adults. The objective was to analyze different biochemical parameters in maternal venous blood and newborns umbilical cord blood (UCB) from healthy and pathological mothers for early detection of future perinatal complications.

Methods: Maternal venous blood (283) and UCB (283) were analyzed. The patients were consecutively, prospectively and transversally studied. Delivery: cesarean section. Mothers and newborns were classified: control group (C) (n = 99) and pathological group (P) (n = 184). Glucose, urea, creatinine, uric acid (UA), bilirubin (Bi), proteins (PT), albumin (Alb), transaminases (ALT/AST), alkaline phosphatase, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), creatinkinasa (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), iron, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, potassium (K), chlorine, cholesterol (Chol), triglycerides (TG) and hsCRP were determined by recommended methods. Students t and Mann-Whitney tests were applied, P < 0.05.

Results: P newborns from P mothers showed significant decrease: in gestation weeks (GW) and newborn weight (NW) with respect to C newborns from C mothers (P < 0.001); significant increases in Chol, TG, UA, K, Bi, AST and GGT (P: 0.01, < 0.001, 0.03, < 0.001, 0.04, < 0.001, < 0.001, respectively) and significant decreases in CK, PT and Alb (P < 0.001). P mothers showed significant increase in UA, ALT, AST, GGT (P: 0.04, 0.02, 0.04, < 0.001, respectively) with respect to C mothers.

Conclusions: The decrease in GW and NW in P newborns with respect to C would be related to intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) accompanying these disorders; increases in Chol, TG, UA, K, Bi, AST and GGT would be related to cellular destruction associated to maternal disorders and deficit in pulmonary development by IUGR respectively, whereas decreases in CK, PT and Alb to IUGR. Increase in UA, ALT, AST and GGT from P mothers with respect to C would be associated to inflammatory process with liver alterations. A future study including greater number of samples and analysis of each maternal disorder is proposed to obtain early markers of neonatal damage and to prevent future perinatal complications.




Int J Clin Pediatr. 2014;3(1):5-11
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14740/ijcp140e