Elevated plasma total homocysteine in preeclampsia

Objectives: To investigate the possible association between hyperhomocysteinemia and preeclampsia. Methods: A case-control study was carried out in the Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Ghaem Hospitals in Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran from May 2004 to August 2006 and included 75 preeclamptic patients, 37 women with mild preeclampsia, and 38 women with severe preeclampsia, in addition we included 40 controls without pregnancy complications. Plasma total homocysteine was determined in all subjects by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. Results: The 3 groups were similar in age and body. Patients with severe preeclampsia had significantly higher mean plasma levels (13.8+/-7mg/l) than normal pregnant women (8.8+/-2.8mg/l) and mild pre-eclamptic women (10.4+/-2.3mg/l)(p<0-05). Conclusion: Women who developed severe preeclampsia have higher plasma homocysteine levels than women who remain normotensive throughout pregnancy.