Elevated amniotic fluid leptin levels in pregnant women who are destined to develop preeclampsia.

Objective. To analyze whether leptin levels of the amniotic fluid elevate during early pregnancy in women destined to develop preeclampsia and to evaluate the relationship between amniotic fluid leptin levels and gestational age, maternal body mass index, and fetal sex. Study design. Leptin levels of the amniotic fluid were compared in two groups of women, preeclamptic (n=20) and normotensive pregnant (n=40), matched for fetal sex, maternal body mass index at sampling, gravidity and fetal gestational age at sampling. Furthermore, amniotic leptin levels in 400 normotensive pregnant women were analyzed for their correlation with gestational age, maternal body mass index, and fetal sex. Results. Median leptin concentrations were significantly higher (p<0.001) in the women with preeclampsia (7.3±0.7 ng/ml) than in the normotensive pregnant women (4.1±0.3 ng/ml), independent of fetal sex. The leptin levels in the amniotic fluid decreased with advanced gestational age (r=0.24, p<0.001). Amniotic fluid leptin le...