Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2014 Nov;27(17):1728-33.
doi: 10.3109/14767058.2013.876622. Epub 2014 Jan 13.

Haptoglobin phenotype and abnormal uterine artery Doppler in a racially diverse cohort

Tracey L Weissgerber  1 , Paula L McGee, Leslie Myatt, John C Hauth, Michael W Varner, Ronald J Wapner, John M Thorp Jr, Brian M Mercer, Alan M Peaceman, Susan M Ramin, Philip Samuels, Anthony C Sciscione, Margaret Harper, George Saade, Yoram Sorokin; Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network
Collaborators, Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Haptoglobin phenotype and abnormal uterine artery Doppler in a racially diverse cohort

Tracey L Weissgerber et al. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2014 Nov.

Abstract

Objective: The anti-oxidant and proangiogenic protein haptoglobin (Hp) is believed to be important for implantation and pregnancy, although its specific role is not known. The three phenotypes (1-1, 2-1 and 2-2) differ in structure and function. Hp 2-2 is associated with increased vascular stiffness in other populations. We examined whether Hp phenotype is associated with abnormal uterine artery Doppler (UAD) in pregnancy.

Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of a preeclampsia prediction cohort nested within a larger placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial of antioxidants for prevention of preeclampsia. We determined Hp phenotype in 2184 women who completed UAD assessments at 17 weeks gestation. Women with notching were re-evaluated for persistent notching at 24 weeks' gestation. Logistic regression was used to assess differences in UAD indices between phenotype groups.

Results: Hp phenotype did not significantly influence the odds of having any notch (p = 0.32), bilateral notches (p = 0.72), or a resistance index (p = 0.28) or pulsatility index (p = 0.67) above the 90th percentile at 17 weeks' gestation. Hp phenotype also did not influence the odds of persistent notching at 24 weeks (p = 0.25).

Conclusions: Hp phenotype is not associated with abnormal UAD at 17 weeks' gestation or with persistent notching at 24 weeks.

Keywords: Ethnicity; haptoglobin; pregnancy; race; vascular resistance; women.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Interests

The authors report no conflicts of interest.

References

    1. Papageorghiou AT, Yu CK, Nicolaides KH. The role of uterine artery Doppler in predicting adverse pregnancy outcome. Best Pract Res Clin Obstet Gynaecol. 2004;18:383–396. - PubMed
    1. North RA, McCowan LM, Dekker GA, Poston L, Chan EH, Stewart AW, Black MA, Taylor RS, Walker JJ, Baker PN, Kenny LC. Clinical risk prediction for pre-eclampsia in nulliparous women: development of model in international prospective cohort. BMJ. 342:d1875. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Yu CK, Smith GC, Papageorghiou AT, Cacho AM, Nicolaides KH. An integrated model for the prediction of preeclampsia using maternal factors and uterine artery Doppler velocimetry in unselected low-risk women. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2005;193:429–436. - PubMed
    1. Melchiorre K, Sutherland GR, Liberati M, Bhide A, Thilaganathan B. Prevalence of maternal cardiac defects in women with high-resistance uterine artery Doppler indices. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2011;37:310–316. - PubMed
    1. Acacio GL. Uterine artery Doppler patterns in abdominal pregnancy. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2002;20:194–196. - PubMed

Publication types

Grants and funding