Chronic Chlamydia pneumonia Infection and Risk of Early-Onset Versus Late-Onset Preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is one of the challenges associated with mother and baby health. Preeclampsia and atherosclerosis share certain similarities. Atherosclerosis has been previously linked to chronic Chlamydia pneumoniae infection. This investigation aimed to establish the role of chronic Chlamydia pneumoniae in the development and onset of preeclampsia. The research was conducted from October 1, 2018 to September 30, 2019 in the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Al-Yarmouk Teaching Hospital in Baghdad, Iraq. The study included 140 pregnant women divided into two groups: 70 women with early and late-onset preeclampsia and 70 women with late-onset preeclampsia. Group I (early-onset preeclampsia) included 35 singleton pregnant women who developed preeclampsia after 34 weeks with blood pressure>140/90 and proteinuria>1. Late-onset preeclampsia (group II) consisted of 35 singleton pregnant women who developed clinical preeclampsia after 34 weeks of pregnancy, with blood pressure>140/90 and proteinuria +1, and 70 healthy term pregnant women without complications who acted as the control group (Group III). Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) analyzers were utilized to measure serum Chlamydia pneumoniae IgG levels in all study groups. Women with early-onset preeclampsia had the highest median Chlamydia pneumonia IgG level, 0.3 U/ml, compared to 0.09 U/ml for women with late-onset preeclampsia and 0.19U/ml for healthy term pregnant women without complications; these differences were statistically significant (P=0.001). This study found that the IgG titer for Chlamydia pneumoniae was higher in early-onset preeclampsia than in late-onset preeclampsia and in healthy term pregnancy without complications. This substantial increase was a direct result of the onset of preeclampsia. This provided evidence for the pathophysiological connection between preeclampsia and the reactivation of a chronic or latent infection.