[Vitamin A and intrauterine growth retardation]

Abstract

Objectives: Compare the levels of vitamin A in cord and maternal blood of 356 mothers who had intrauterine growth retarded babies (IUGR) and 356 mothers who had adequate for gestational age (AGA) babies, identify a possible relationship between vitamin A and IUGR, and evaluate the correlation between maternal and blood levels of vitamin A.

Material and methods: Mothers were recruited from 4 hospitals in Campinas, where an average of 1350 babies are born every month. Newborns were classified as being IUGR according to the Lubchenco classification. Gestational age of the newborns was evaluated by the Capurro method. Vitamin A was measured by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

Results: More IUGR babies - 188/356 (33.1%) than AGA babies - 52/356 (14.6%) had low levels of vitamin A (<or= 0.70umol/l) in cord blood. However, the percentages of IUGR mothers (1.1%) with low levels of vitamin A were similar to AGA mothers (1.4%).

Conclusion: The results suggest that vitamin A is the result of being born small rather than vice-versa. The explanations for the lower cord levels of vitamin A in IUGR babies compared to AGA babies are: inadequate supply of vitamin A by the mother to the foetus, poor foetal binding, increased utilization of vitamin A by the foetus, and poor storage by the foetus.