| Carbon Monoxide Could Prevent Pregnancy Complication -
08-09-2006, 08:48 PM
A new study reveals treating pregnant women with carbon monoxide could prevent preeclampsia. Researchers suggest the findings explain why mothers who smoke are less prone to have preeclampsia.
Preeclampsia affects 5 to 7 percent of pregnancies and can result in the death of the baby or mother. The only effective treatment for preeclampsia is to deliver the baby, which can put the baby at risk.
Researchers from Queen's University in Ontario report the tissue from the placentas of non-smoking women who had a C-section were exposed to the same kind of oxidative stress experienced by women with preeclampsia. When they treated the tissues with carbon monoxide, the cell death in the placenta was significantly reduced.
The authors report this may explain why women who smoke have a 33-percent lower risk of developing preeclampsia. Carbon monoxide is found in cigarette smoke and carried into the mother's blood. However, researchers stress that any perceived benefit of smoking during pregnancy is outweighed by the many other risks including stillbirth, low birth weight, and sudden infant death syndrome.
They admit they now need future studies to determine if carbon monoxide can prevent placental cell death in animals and if treatment would provide protection.
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