AUTHOR=Ahmed Yasir I. B. , Yagoub Hind S. , Hassan Mohamed A. , Adam I. , Hamdan Hamdan Z. 

TITLE=Maternal serum iron status, hepcidin and interleukin-6 levels in women with preeclampsia

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Physiology

VOLUME=14

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/physiology/articles/10.3389/fphys.2023.1049994

DOI=10.3389/fphys.2023.1049994

ISSN=1664-042X

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Introduction:</bold> Preeclampsia can lead to a number of adverse maternal and perinatal effects. The association between iron status [serum iron, ferritin and total iron-binding capacity (TIBC)], unsaturated iron-binding capacity, hepcidin, interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels and preeclampsia is not fully understood.</p><p><bold>Objective:</bold> To assess the levels of iron status, hepcidin and interleukin-6 in women with preeclampsia compared with healthy pregnant women.</p><p><bold>Method:</bold> A case-control study (60 women were recruited in each group) was conducted at Saad Abuelela Maternity Hospital in Khartoum, Sudan. Sociodemographic and clinical data were gathered through a questionnaire. The levels of iron status, hepcidin and IL-6 were measured using applicable methods.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> There was no significant difference in the median [interquartile range (IQR)] of age, parity or body mass index between the two groups. Moreover, the median (IQR) of the iron status, hepcidin and interleukin-6 did not differ between women with preeclampsia and healthy controls. There were no significant correlations between haemoglobin, hepcidin and IL-6. There were also no significant correlations between serum iron, serum ferritin, hepcidin and IL-6. However, there was a significant positive correlation between hepcidin and IL-6 (r = 0.393, <italic>p</italic> = 0.002).</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> In this study, women with preeclampsia had levels of iron status, hepcidin and IL-6 similar to those observed in healthy pregnant women. There was no significant correlation between iron status, hepcidin and IL-6.</p>