Effect of fetal gender on maternal serum human chorionic gonadotropin levels throughout pregnancy.
OBJECTIVE
Maternal serum human chorionic gonadotropin (MshCG) levels are higher in pregnant women with female fetuses than in pregnant women with male fetuses in the third trimester of pregnancy. Our aim was to examine the effect of fetal sex on MshCG levels throughout the pregnancy.


METHODS
Twenty-nine uncomplicated pregnancies (14 had male fetus and 15 had female fetus) were included in the study. MshCG levels were measured four times between 8-12, 14-18, 24-28 and 32-36 weeks of pregnancy.


RESULTS
MshCG levels were significantly higher in both sexes between 8-12 weeks than the other three measurement periods. At 8-12 and 14-18 weeks measurements, there were no sex related differences in the MshCG levels. At 24-28 (P<0.004) and 32-36 (P<0.001) weeks MshCG levels were significantly higher in pregnancies bearing female fetuses than those bearing male fetuses.


CONCLUSIONS
Fetal gender has a significant effect on MshCG levels in the third trimester of pregnancy. Accordingly, no correlation seems to exist in the first and second trimesters.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dokuz Eylül University Hospital, Izmir, Turkey. mert.gol@deu.edu.tr
Mert
M
Gol
Serkan
S
Guclu
Ahmet
A
Demir
Yakup
Y
Erata
Namik
N
Demir
D000328:Adult; D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy / Q000097:blood*; D012727:Sex Characteristics
D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin