title: The hormonal profile in ectopic pregnancies.
abstract: We prospectively investigated the maternal serum level of beta- human chorionic gonadotropin (beta-hCG) progesterone (P), estradiol (E2), human placental lactogen (HPL), alfa-fetoprotein (AFP) and cancer antigen 125 (CA 125) during the first trimester of normal and abnormal pregnancies. Serum samples were obtained from 20 women with normal intra-uterine pregnancy (IUPs). Fifteen whose pregnancies were complicated with spontaneous abortion and 31 with surgically and pathologically confirmed ectopic pregnancies (EPs). The mean serum levels of beta-hCG, E2 and P in patients with Eps (9490.55 +/- 3071.2 mIU/ml, 100.1 +/- 22.09 pg/ml, 4.18 +/- 1.19 ng/ml, respectively) were significantly lower than those measured in normal IUPs (73796.8 +/- 15554.7 mIU/ml, 500.15 +/- 98.84 pg/ml, 19.2 +/- 2.8 ng/ml respectively (p < 0.001) and significantly lower than in patients with spontaneous abortion (22524 +/- 6213 mIU/ml, p < 0.05, 339.8 +/- 112.16 pg/ml, p < 0.01, 10.59 +/- 3.03 ng/ml, p < 0.05 respectively). No significant difference was recorded with respect to serum levels of HPL, AFP and CA 125 among the groups. We also investigated the diagnostic value of simple E2 and P in patients with EPs. We could not identify a discriminatory cutoff value because there was a considerable overlap in serum P ans E2 levels between the patients with IUPs and EPs. In conclusion, it is not possible to define a cutoff discriminatory value of P and E2 that completely separates ectopic from IUPs, but the addition of these assays to the workup of a patient with suspected EP may facilitate the earlier diagnosis of EP.
authors.affiliation: Dr. Zekai Tahir Burrak Women's Hospital Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kuscu
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Vicdan
authors.forename: N O
authors.initials: NO
authors.lastname: Turhan
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Oguz
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zorlu
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Gokmen
mesh_terms: D000022:Abortion, Spontaneous / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology; D015295:Antigens, Tumor-Associated, Carbohydrate / Q000097:blood; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin / Q000097:blood; D018997:Chorionic Gonadotropin, beta Subunit, Human; D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D004958:Estradiol / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000097:blood; D010928:Placental Lactogen / Q000097:blood; D011247:Pregnancy; D011261:Pregnancy Trimester, First; D011271:Pregnancy, Ectopic / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D011374:Progesterone / Q000097:blood; D011446:Prospective Studies; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D015295:Antigens, Tumor-Associated, Carbohydrate; D015415:Biomarkers; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin; D018997:Chorionic Gonadotropin, beta Subunit, Human; D010446:Peptide Fragments; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins; D011374:Progesterone; D004958:Estradiol; D010928:Placental Lactogen