ETHANOL CONSUMPTION DURING PREGNANCY: ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE APPEARANCE OF NEONATAL DYSMORPHIES AND THE CONTRACTILITY OF HUMAN UMBILICAL ARTERY

MORALES S, IVELI F, SAVIETTO V, CECOTTI N, REBOLLEDO A, MILESI V.

Riberao Preto, Brasil,

Congreso; XLIII Reunión Anual de la Sociedad Latinoamericana de Investigación Pediátrica; 2005

Introduction: maternal consumption of ethanol is one of the risk factors present during pregnancy. Complete dysmorphic manifestations and fetal alcohol syndrome only appear if maternal ethanol consumption is high. More often, the child suffers a partial presentation of this syndrome. Our objective was to explore the existence of associations between maternal ethanol consumption and the appearance of congenital defects and/or dysmorphies in neonates, studying as well the contractile properties of their umbilical arteries (UA), which have a prominent role in the regulation of fetoplacental blood flow. Methodology: two experimental groups were used: mothers who declared ethanol consumption during any period of the pregnancy or during the three previous months (exposed, E, n=46) and non exposed mothers (NE, n=48). Women who smoked or had any associated pathology were excluded. A thorough physical examination of the neonates was conducted, and their umbilical cords were obtained in order to analyze the contractility of the UA. Results: 61 % of the neonates from group E presented minor dysmorphies, while only 16 % of the NE presented them. Compared to the NE group, the UA from the E group developed significantly lower contractions (gram force/gram weight) when exposed to 1 µM serotonin (58.0 ± 7.5 gF/gW, n=12 vs 87.6 ± 8.8 gF/gW, n=14) or to a high K+ depolarizing solution (50.5 ± 7.6 gF/gW, n=10 vs. 94.21 ± 16.3 gF/gW, n= 10 p<0.05). Conclusions: we observed a significant association between maternal ethanol consumption and the appearance of minor dysmorphies in neonates, as well as contractile alterations in their umbilical arteries.: maternal consumption of ethanol is one of the risk factors present during pregnancy. Complete dysmorphic manifestations and fetal alcohol syndrome only appear if maternal ethanol consumption is high. More often, the child suffers a partial presentation of this syndrome. Our objective was to explore the existence of associations between maternal ethanol consumption and the appearance of congenital defects and/or dysmorphies in neonates, studying as well the contractile properties of their umbilical arteries (UA), which have a prominent role in the regulation of fetoplacental blood flow. Methodology: two experimental groups were used: mothers who declared ethanol consumption during any period of the pregnancy or during the three previous months (exposed, E, n=46) and non exposed mothers (NE, n=48). Women who smoked or had any associated pathology were excluded. A thorough physical examination of the neonates was conducted, and their umbilical cords were obtained in order to analyze the contractility of the UA. Results: 61 % of the neonates from group E presented minor dysmorphies, while only 16 % of the NE presented them. Compared to the NE group, the UA from the E group developed significantly lower contractions (gram force/gram weight) when exposed to 1 µM serotonin (58.0 ± 7.5 gF/gW, n=12 vs 87.6 ± 8.8 gF/gW, n=14) or to a high K+ depolarizing solution (50.5 ± 7.6 gF/gW, n=10 vs. 94.21 ± 16.3 gF/gW, n= 10 p<0.05). Conclusions: we observed a significant association between maternal ethanol consumption and the appearance of minor dysmorphies in neonates, as well as contractile alterations in their umbilical arteries.