Elevated homocysteine in pregnancy: what is it that threatens?

Homocysteine is a substance that forms directly in the body during the processing of the amino acid methionine. The last person gets along with the food. Particularly rich in useful acids are products such as meat, eggs and all sour-milk products. In the formation of homocysteine, all vitamins of group B, especially vitamins B6 and B12, as well as folic acid take part.

With the course of life, the level of this substance in the blood tends to increase gradually. In men, this indicator is higher than for women in the age of up to 50 years. Elevated homocysteine during pregnancy can lead to serious complications, including spontaneous interruption, that is, miscarriage. In addition, there is a possibility that it will damage the vessels, making their walls more loose. As a consequence, it becomes easier to settle cholesterol and calcium on the vessel walls and form a so-called cholesterol plaque. This situation contributes to the development of thrombi, which is quite dangerous not only for health, but for human life. According to statistics, for women the risk of getting such complications is higher than that of men by as much as 20 percent.

Elevated homocysteine during pregnancy can be due to a variety of reasons, for example, smoking, drinking alcohol and even coffee in large quantities. In the last few years, the incidence of miscarriage in females is quite frequent, and this indicator increases every year. And if it was possible to keep the pregnancy and bear the fetus normally, during the childbirth process, increased homocysteine during pregnancy will make itself felt, as often complications of a thrombotic or microcirculatory nature occur.

One of the most terrible pathologies is infertility, which occurs due to a defect during implantation of the embryo. In the second and third trimester of pregnancy, a violation of the level of homocysteine in the blood leads to the formation of late gestosis, and in rare cases occurs fetal asphyxia, that is, strangulation of an unborn child. Often, women with this diagnosis give birth to babies with a very small weight and face a whole "bouquet" of diseases even in the newborn age.

Homocysteine during pregnancy is able to freely enter the system of communication of the child and the mother's organism through the placenta, and already in the early term negatively affects the development of the fetus. As a result, some pathologies occur at this stage. Reduced homocysteine during pregnancy is also able to negatively affect a woman's well-being. But a slight decrease in the level of this substance in the blood is considered normal for a woman in an interesting position and does not require medical treatment.

There is a separate category of women, which doctors recommend taking the test for the level of homocysteine in the blood. These can be safely attributed to women who are planning a second pregnancy, or those who have complications in the second and third trimester, for example, the discrepancy between the size of the fetus and the available date. In a risk group, it is customary to include pregnant women with a genetic predisposition or special hereditary pathologies, since their treatment can lead to an increase in homocysteine content in the blood. And also includes all women with the risk of blood clots, the so-called thrombophilia, in particular, pregnant women with the termination of fetal development already at an early stage or its incompetence.

Homocysteine: the norm during pregnancy

In women in the position, the standard value of this indicator ranges from 4.6 to 12.4 μmol / l. Minor deviations are allowed and do not pose any danger to the health of both the future mother and the baby. But even small changes, such as a decrease or increase in the level of this substance by more than 0.5, are already unacceptable.