Nutritional Status of Pregnant Women and Urine Calcium-to-Creatinine Ratio During 24th - 28th Weeks of Pregnancy and Their Relationship with the Incidence of Hypertensive Disorders During Pregnancy

Considering that gestational hypertension may have severe effects on the mother and fetus, this study was conducted to examine the nutritional status of pregnant women and urine calcium-to-creatinine ratio during 24th - 28th weeks of pregnancy and their relationship with the incidence of hypertensive disorders during pregnancy.
This prospective longitudinal study recruited 538 pregnant women attending prenatal clinics in Tehran, Iran in 2011. A food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was completed for all mothers at the baseline for nutritional intake assessment, and a random urine sample was taken between 24th - 28th weeks of pregnancy to calculate the Ca/Cr-ratio. Hypertensive disorders were classified into two groups: a, gestational hypertension in case of detecting a blood pressure ≥ 140/90; and b, preeclampsia in case of increased proteinuria. Data were analyzed using SPSS V.16 and N4 software programs.
In this study, 14 (6.2%) pregnant women had hypertensive disorders during pregnancy. The desired nutritional status and Ca/Cr-ratio had no significant relationship with hypertensive disorders during pregnancy. The regression test was used to investigate the variables affecting hypertensive disorders, which showed the significant relationship of pre-pregnancy BMI and mother’s age with hypertensive disorders during pregnancy (P ≤ 0.05).
In this study, the incidence of hypertensive disorders had no relationship with the Ca/Cr-ratio and the nutritional status of the pregnant women. However, since more than 80% of the participants had undesirable nutrition, mothers’ nutrition in the first half of pregnancy is necessary to be under observed.