Effects of Gravidity on Atherogenic Indices in Normotensive and Hypertensive Second Trimester Pregnant Women

Background: Pregnancy results in certain physiological and metabolic changes that results to shift in certain biochemical markers and could even result in hypertension in some women thus predisposing them to risk of cardiovascular disease. While this is true, some women express these predisposing risk factors in subsequent pregnancies. Therefore, it may be a significant contribution to understand the dynamics of artherogenic indices with increasing number of pregnancies.

Aim: The goal of the study was aimed to assess gravidity effect on artherogenic indices in both normotensive and hypertensive second-trimester pregnant women.

Materials and Methods: At Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, a cross-sectional study was carried out with 100 pregnant women. The consenting patients who met the inclusion criteria were classified into two groups: normotensive (50 normotensive pregnant women in their second trimester) and hypertensive (50 hypertensive pregnant women in their second trimester) (HPW2T). The participants were subsequently split into three subgroups depending on gravidity: primigravida (no of pregnancy=1), multigravida (no of pregnancies>1), and grand multigravida (no of pregnancies≥5). For the assessment of TC, TG, HDL, and LDL, fasting blood samples were taken using the venepuncture technique. Mathematically, artheriogenic indices (AIP, CR-I, CR-II, AC, and APoB/APoA1) were calculated. At a P-value>0.05, the data was examined using ANOVA and the Tukey comparison test.

Results: There was no significant difference in artheriogenic indices between the gravidity groups in the normotensive group, with a P-value>0.05, which was also the cases among those in the hypertensive group.

Conclusion: The study has shown that gravidity does not have any effect on artheriogenic indices among normotensive and hypertensive pregnant women in the second trimester in Rivers State University Teaching Hospital.