[Copper in the neonatal period. Maternal-fetal relations]

Abstract

The objective of this study has been to know the copper levels in maternal and cord blood at delivery, the relationships between them, and the influence that maternal age, parity, social class, sex, gestational age and anthropometric parameters have over them.

Material and method: Copper levels in serum from one hundred mothers and their newborns have been determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry.

Results: The mean copper level in maternal serum was 232.4 +/- 31.3 micrograms/100 ml, and 50.2 +/- 18.4 micrograms/100 ml in cord blood. We do not find any influence of maternal age, parity, sex and neonatal anthropometry over these levels. We see an ascending tendency of serum copper in the newborns as they increase their gestational age, and in mothers as soon as they belong to a lower socioeconomic level. There is a significant difference between the cord copper levels of newborns from mothers with serum copper levels less or equal to P25 or P50 and those from ones over P75, and a significant positive correlation between maternal and newborns ones.

Conclusions: Our results show the relationship between the maternal and neonatal copper status, the influence of the socioeconomic situation on the maternal levels, and the age gestational age on the newborns ones.