Antioxidant Vitamin Levels in Term and Preterm Infants and Their Relation to Maternal Vitamin Status

Lipid peroxidation plays a vital role in the pathogenesis of many neonatal complications. Preterm babies are especially predisposed to lung diseases and retinopathy, probably due to a deficiency in their antioxidant systems. Vitamins E, A, and C are part of the natural antioxidant defense systems. We aimed to determine the levels of vitamins E, A, and C in maternal and cord blood plasma of term and preterm infants and to investigate the relationships between these levels. In the present study we determined vitamin E, A, and C levels in the umbilical cord blood of term ( n = 30) and preterm ( n = 22) infants and their mothers by HPLC. Blood samples were taken during delivery. Levels of lipid soluble antioxidant vitamin E and A in cord blood were lower than maternal values ( p