Influence of maternal diabetes mellitus on fetal iron status.

Objective: To determine the effects of maternal diabetes on fetal iron status using serum transferrin receptors (STfR) and their ratio to ferritin (TfR-F index) in cord blood.

Methods: Iron, ferritin, erythropoietin, STfR and haemoglobin concentration were measured and TfR-F index calculated in 97 maternal/cord blood pairs. Forty-nine women had type 1 diabetes (diagnosed before pregnancy) and these were compared with forty-eight non- diabetic controls.