Search for association between MCV and miscarriage, reflecting ethanol consumption or otherwise

In 38 miscarrying women and 38 pair-matched controls, all studied retrospectively, the mean pair-difference in MCV is + 1.2 fl, P less than 0.05 (one-tailed). As ethanol elevates MCV, this might weakly support the suggested role of ethanol in some miscarriages, although folate/B12 deficiencies cannot be excluded. The paper demonstrates only the feasibility of a first step in defining the possible role of ethanol in some miscarriages. It identifies a difficulty encountered from earlier attendance in the miscarrying group so that a later study could circumvent it and perhaps lead to a case for funding of a prospective enquiry into the dose-response relations of any association that might exist.