|
Preeclampsia Prevention Study
One of the perinatologists in the Department of Obstetrics And Gynecology at West Virginia University School of Medicine is doing a preeclampsia prevention study. Her Name is Heather Mertz, MD. She's looking for patients who are pregnant with their first babies or women who have been pregnant before and had preeclampsia.
The goal of the study is to determine if taking extra antioxidant vitamins during pregnancy will prevent preeclampsia from developing. Many scientists have been able to show that women with preeclampsia have lower than normal levels of antioxidants in their bodies. It has also been shown that women with preeclampsia have higher than normal levels of free radicals. Thus, the cause of preeclampsia may be a disturbance in the normal balance between free radicals and antioxidants.
Antioxidants are substances that protect us from free radicals. Free radicals are harmful agents, which are normally produced in the body and are neutralized by antioxidants that are also normally present in our bodies. Thus, there is a delicate balance between free radicals and antioxidants within us that keeps our cells and tissues healthy. Certain vitamins function as antioxidants. Examples are vitamin C and vitamin E.
At this time, we don't know of anything that prevents or treats preeclampsia other than delivery of the baby once preeclampsia develops. Many treatments have been tried in the past but none have been shown to prevent preeclampsia or decrease its severity. Women in their first pregnancies are more likely to develop preeclampsia. Also, women who have had preeclampsia with a previous pregnancy are at increased risk with future pregnancies.
To enter the study, women have to be between 13 and 19 weeks gestation. They will be randomized into either a study or placebo group. The study group women will get extra antioxidants to take along with their routine prenatal vitamins. These antioxidants are safe during pregnancy for both pregnant women and their babies. Women participating in the study can continue their regular prenatal care with their own obstetricians. We will send them their vitamins. They will receive monthly calls from me to make sure they are taking their vitamins.
Dr. Mertz's study is supported by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and is being conducted out of Wake Forest University where she did her maternal fetal medicine fellowship. It is a randomized, double blind, placebo controlled study. It has been approved by the Institutional Review Board for the Protection of Human Research Subjects at Wake Forest University and West Virginia University.
To participate, or to learn more about this study, contact Ann Dacey, RN, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, West Virginia University School of Medicine
adacey@hsc.wvu.edu
Trisha
pdeclue@cwc.cc.wy.us (WY) is doing research about HELLP syndrome in Wyoming. If there are any HELLP survivors on our e-mail list from Wyoming, Trisha would like to hear from you.
[[--]]
|
|
