Third trimester plasma neurokinin B levels in women with and without preeclampsia.

Objective: This study was undertaken to measure neurokinin B (NKB) levels in pregnant women with and without preeclampsia (PE) in the third trimester. The study focused on the Black (sub-Saharan ancestry) and 'mixed ancestry' (synonymous with 'colored' and denotes an established race group of Khoisan, European, Malay, Malagascan, African, and South Indian ancestry) populations, constituting the majority of inhabitants of the Western Cape Province of South Africa.

Methods: Questionnaires were used to obtain clinical data from pregnant 'mixed ancestry' and Black women.

Altered plasma neurokinin B levels in patients with pre-eclampsia.

Objective(s): This study determines the levels of Neurokinin B (NKB) in the plasma of South African coloured pregnant women with and without preeclampsia (PE) and correlates these results with clinical data. Additionally, the peptide radioimmunoassay (RIA) and peptide enzyme immunoassay (EIA) methods were compared in the determination of the Neurokinin B levels, using 58 samples from patients with PE.

Methods: At the Tygerberg Hospital, Cape Town, SA, 43 pregnant women with PE and 62 healthy pregnant women were recruited, and clinical data were gathered using questionnaires; 58 patient samples were tested by both RIA and EIA.