title: Plasma prolactin levels during pregnancy.
abstract: Plasma prolactin levels in women who were between 8 and 40 weeks pregnant were determined by a homologous double antibody radioimmunoassay method. There were 980 samples from 839 uncomplicated and 213 samples from 116 complicated pregnancies. Prolactin levels in normal pregnancies varied from 6 ng/ml during early pregnancy to 210 ng/ml near term. A few values beyond the normal range were found in various groups of complicated pregnancies. About 14 per cent of samples from patients with threatened abortion and 7 per cent from patients with hypertension were above the upper normal range. The proportion of values below the 10th centile in patients with a low urinary oestrogen excretion was significantly higher than that in the normal population. Plasma prolactin levels did not seem to be a valuable guide to maternal or fetal well-being.
mesh_terms: D000033:Abortion, Threatened / Q000097:blood; D004967:Estrogens / Q000652:urine; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000097:blood; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000097:blood; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000097:blood*; D011388:Prolactin / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D004967:Estrogens; D011388:Prolactin