Racial differences in C-reactive protein levels during normal pregnancy.

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Health
• Immunology
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Pregnancy is a state of increased systemic inflammation.
• C-reactive protein (CRP) is a key biomarker of inflammation.
• Understanding CRP levels in pregnancy is crucial for assessing maternal health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize serum C-reactive protein (CRP) levels in a diverse cohort of healthy pregnant women.
• To utilize a high-sensitivity assay for precise CRP measurement.
• To investigate potential demographic influences on CRP levels during gestation.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional analysis of 775 pregnant women.
• Serum CRP measured using highly sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits.
• Specimens collected before 26 weeks of gestation.

Main Results:

• Median serum CRP was 4.8 mg/L (IQR, 0.63-15.7).
• Black women exhibited significantly higher median CRP levels (7.68 mg/L) compared to white women (2.59 mg/L; P < .001).
• Elevated CRP in Black women persisted after controlling for factors like smoking and maternal weight.

Conclusions:

• Pregnancy inherently acts as an inflammatory stressor.
• Observed racial differences in CRP warrant further investigation.
• Understanding these disparities may illuminate racial disparities in inflammatory pregnancy disorders like preterm labor and preeclampsia.