Determination of mineral, parathyroid hormone, and 6-keto-prostaglandin-F1 alpha levels in pregnant women with hypertension and pre-eclampsia

Determinations of total calcium, total magnesium, calcium ion, parathyroid hormone and 6-keto-prostaglandin-F1 alpha levels were carried out on 84 blood samples from 4 groups of women categorised as non-pregnant normotensive (NNP), pregnant normotensive (NP), pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) and pre-eclampsia (PE). PIH was clinically diagnosed when the diastolic pressure was more than 90 mmHg and was only hypertensive during pregnancy while PE was with additional proteinuria after 20 weeks of gestation. Compared to NNP women, total calcium and parathyroid hormone levels were of lower levels (p < 0.05) in NP women while in PIH women, total calcium and 6-keto-prostaglandin-F1 alpha levels were also lowered (p < 0.05). Compared to NNP women, PE women's levels of total calcium, calcium ion and 6-keto-prostaglandin-F1 alpha decreased (p < 0.05) while parathyroid hormone level increased (p < 0.05). When compared to the NP women, PE women had decreased levels (p < 0.05) of total calcium as well as calcium ion and increased level (p < 0.05) of parathyroid hormone. Calcium ion was found to be negatively correlated (NNP : r = -0.883, p = 0.008/NP : r = -0.931, p = 0.000) while parathyroid hormone was positively correlated (NNP : r = 0.904, p = 0.013/NP : r = 0.913, p = 0.000) with mean arterial pressure.