Does preeclampsia influence fetal lung maturity?
OBJECTIVE: This retrospective study compared the fetal lung maturity biochemical profile of patients having preeclampsia with that of patients having preterm labor. STUDY DESIGN: Amniotic fluid was obtained by transabdominal amniocentesis in 90 patients, 59 patients with preterm labor (PTL) and 31 patients with preeclampsia (PRE). Pregnancies with fetal growth restriction were excluded. Fetal lung maturity was assessed by lecithin/sphingomyelin ratio (L/S) and by a fluorescence polarimetry assay (FLM). Mean values of L/S ratios and FLM were compared between the PTL and the PRE groups, each within two gestational age subgroups (27-32.9 weeks gestation and 33-36 weeks gestation). Student t-test, Chi-square test Fisher’s exact test were used for statistical analysis. A p value < 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS: During the gestational age interval of 33-36 weeks, the mean L/S ratios were significantly lower in pregnancies complicated by PRE than in those complicated by PTL (1.99 +
