title: Concentration of pregnancy-associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A) in patients with pre-eclamptic toxaemia.
abstract: The plasma concentration of PAPP-A has been measured in 84 patients with pre-eclamptic toxaemia within 24 hours of their first admission to hospital. There were 51 patients who suffered from mild pre-eclampsia (late pregnancy hypertension without albuminuria). The PAPP-A values in these patients did not differ significantly from the normal value for the corresponding stage of gestation. On the other hand, the PAPP-A levels in albuminuric (severe) pre-eclampsia were significantly higher than normal; a finding which was more pronounced in those patients who presented with severe pre-eclampsia relatively early in pregnancy. It is unusual for a placental product to be raised in the presence of putative placental damage and it is suggested that PAPP-A might be involved with causal mechanisms in pre-eclampsia.
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000097:blood*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011257:Pregnancy Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D011266:Pregnancy-Associated Plasma Protein-A / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D011257:Pregnancy Proteins; D011266:Pregnancy-Associated Plasma Protein-A