title: Maternal serum markers in second-trimester oligohydramnios.
abstract: The levels of the maternal serum markers alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG), and unconjugated oestriol (uE3) in 35 pregnant women with early second-trimester oligohydramnios differed from those in a reference population of 1699 singleton pregnancies. Maternal serum AFP levels above the 95th centile of the population distribution were observed in 80 per cent (16/20) of oligohydramnios cases with a normal fetus and in only 20 per cent (3/15) of the cases with a fetus displaying urogenital tract malformations. Elevated levels of hCG (above the 95th centile) and decreased levels of uE3 (below the fifth centile) were encountered in 26 per cent (9/35) and 17 per cent (6/35) of the women, irrespective of the fetal condition. The abnormal profile of the serum markers in early second-trimester oligohydramnios resulted in 57 per cent (20 out of 35) of screen-positive cases for either fetal Down's syndrome or neural tube defects, compared with 8.4 per cent (143 out of 1699) in the reference population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Genetics, University Hospital Dijkzigt, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Los
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Hagenaars
authors.forename: T E
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Cohen-Overbeek
authors.forename: H W
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Quartero
mesh_terms: D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin / Q000097:blood*; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D004964:Estriol / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D016104:Oligohydramnios / Q000097:blood*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011262:Pregnancy Trimester, Second; D012016:Reference Values; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins; D004964:Estriol