TITLE:
Trace Element Levels in Urban Ghanaian Pregnant Women
AUTHORS:
Efua Amuaba Appiah, George Awuku Asare
KEYWORDS:
Zinc, Copper, Selenium, Chromium, Supplementation
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology,
Vol.10 No.11,
November
30,
2020
ABSTRACT: The
trace elements used in the study are zinc, copper, selenium and iron, these
have been implicated in various reproductive events. Maternal trace elements
intake and their concentration are important for maternal and fetal well-being;
however, data is insufficient in Ghanaian pregnant women. Especially, their
concentration according to the pregnancy course (1st, 2nd,
and 3rd trimester) should be determined, which may provide
fundamental data of this issue. The maternal blood levels of
four trace elements: zinc, copper, selenium and iron, were determined according to the
gestational age in Ghanaian pregnant women. Blood samples were taken from 150
pregnant women (50 for each trimester) and 50 non-pregnant women (control). Concentration
of four trace elements was measured using Flame Atomic Absorptive Spectrophotometer. The data (mean
± SD; ug/L) was as follows: in the order of control, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd trimester. 1) For zinc, 313 ± 211, 101 ± 92, 66 ± 63, and 443 ± 321. 2) For
copper, 345 ± 261, 1349 ± 418, 1507 ± 388, and 1811 ± 344. 3) For selenium, 99 ±
25, 56 ± 17, 163 ± 38, and 261 ± 84. 4) For iron, 43.2 ±
15.2, 27.3 ± 15.7, 28.7 ± 17.2, and 40.5 ± 17 ug/L. Although each trace element
showed various/specific concentrations according to the gestational age,
overall tendency was a decline at 1st and 2nd trimester,
and increase at 3rd trimester. The latter may be due to the
introduction of supplementation. These data may be of use to consider maternal
nutritional status in this area. Objective: To estimate the levels of
zinc, copper, iron and selenium in pregnancy. Subjects were recruited from the
Osu Maternity Home (OMH).