Affiliations: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Shimane Medical University, Izumo 693, Japan
Abstract: To evaluate fetal erythrocyte functions in the hypoxic environment during delivery, we measured fetal erythrocyte deformability and examined its relationship to various factors affecting it in 102 fullterm, vaginally delivered fetuses. Erythrocyte deformability at delivery was higher in umbilical arterial blood than in umbilical venous blood, and much lower in maternal blood than that in umbilical vessel blood. Erythrocyte deformability was significantly greater in both an asphyxiated group (1-minute Apgar score ≤ 7) and an acidotic group (pH≤ 7.20) than in a normal group (1-minute Apgar score ≤ 8, pH> 7.20, respectively). The PO2 in umbilical arterial blood was significantly lower than in umbilica1 venous blood. Umbilical blood erythrocyte ATP was significantly higher than that in maternal blood. Erythrocyte deformability in umbilical arterial blood was negatively correlated with umbilical arterial blood PO2 (r=−0.63, n=102, p< 0.001) but positively correlated with erythrocyte ATP level (r= 0.76, n=72, p< 0.001). Umbilical arterial blood erythrocyte ATP was negatively correlated with umbilical arterial blood P02 (r=−0.75, n=72, p< 0.001). These findings suggest that in the hypoxic environment during delivery, fetal erythrocyte deformability is enhanced by the reduced PO2 and the increased erythrocyte ATP levels.
Keywords: Erythrocyte, Deformability, Fetal hypoxia, Delivery, ATP
