Role of Alphafeto Protein, Beta Human Chorionic Gonadotropin and Unconjugated Estriol as Predictor of Preeclampsia

Abstract

Pre-eclampsia remains a major cause of prenatal morbidity and mortality worldwide. Cause of pre-eclampsia is still ill defined and there is no appropriate test for predicting occurrence of the disorder.This study aimed to assess association between pre-eclampsia and serum levels of alphafeto protein (AFP), β-human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG) , and unconjugated estriol (uE₃ or free estriol). Method: The study  carried out on 500 pregnant women admitted to R.N.T. Medical college ,Udaipur.Subjects were divided into 3 groups normotensive pregnancies,mild preeclampsia and severe preeclampcia .The level of β-hCG ,AFP and unconjugated estriol were measured using Enzyme-linked lmmunosorbent Assay (ELISA) method and results were analyzed statistically using SPSS softwere. Results: The Mean ± SD levels of serum urea, creatinine, uric acid, AFP and β-HCG were found to be significantly increased and unconjugated estriol  was found significantly decreased in mild & severe (P<0.001) pre-eclamptic women ,as compared to normotensive controls.Conclusion : The population-specific median values for the three biomarkers (AFP, β- HCG, uE3) may be used as reference values during prenatal screening in pregnant women.