Abstract

Abstract Objective: Complicated pregnancies demonstrate abnormal decidual and placental villous vasculature. We examined maternal concentrations of vascular endothelial growth factor and placental growth factor in normal pregnancies and in pregnancies that were complicated by isolated idiopathic small-for-gestational-age (SGA) newborn infants, preeclampsia alone, or preeclampsia with SGA newborn infants at the time of clinical disease and before the onset of clinical signs. Study Design: Serum vascular endothelial growth factor and placental growth factor were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in cross-sectional and longitudinal cohorts of pregnant nulliparous women. The results were compared by Wilcoxon tests or a mixed-models method, respectively. Results: In the cross-sectional study, serum placental growth factor was reduced in abnormal pregnancy relative to control subjects (SGA newborn infants, 18 [P = .04]; preeclampsia, 20; or preeclampsia with small- for-gestational-age newborn infants, 11 [P = .0001]) as early as 15 to 19 weeks of gestation in preeclampsia with SGA newborn infants. Vascular endothelial growth factor was Conclusion: We postulate that decreased placental growth factor production results in abnormalities of placental angiogenesis through direct and indirect effects on other vasculotropic growth factors. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2003;188:177-82.)