Umbilical Cord Plasma Erythropoietin Levels In Prolonged Pregnancies And Its Relation To The Fetal Outcome

This study was carried out on 80 pregnant women, admitted toObstetric and Gynecology Department. All our patients had singletonpregnancy. Their gestational age was between 37 to 43 weeks. Thegestational age was confirmed by calculating their dates from the first dayof their last menstrual period, patients were not included in the study if theywere unsure of their date, or with multifetal pregnancies or had medicaldisorder or obstetric complication e.g. antepurtum haemorrhage.We divided the cases into 2 groups:(I) Term (Control) 37-40.(B) Prolonged pregnancy group (Study) 41-43. The prolonged pregnancygroup were redivided into 2 groups A & B, (A) without adverse outcome,(B) with adverse outcome.The patients undergone a ceaseran section within 24 hours of thetests. Amniotic fluid with meconium, Apgar score at 1 and 5 minutes andadmission to leU were recorded.Cord blood was taken and erythropoietin level was estimated andassumed to be a gold standard for presence of hypoxia and as an index offetal oxygenation in pregnancies delivered before and after their expecteddate (37-43 weeks gestation).Statistical analysis of the data collected was done.The results of the present study showed:(1) EPO level was significantly higher in the prolonged pregnancy groupthan control groups: [43.6±2.22 mIu/ml vs. 28.6±3.5] mIu/ml