Miscarriage indictor ‘found in plasma’

A new study may have highlighted a previously unknown contributory factor of miscarriages.

The Miscarriage Association states that the complication affects around 25 per cent of pregnancies in the UK. Now, doctors at the University of Granada have found that low levels of copper and zinc in the maternal plasma have a correlation with a higher chance of miscarriage.

«Despite the significant progress made in reproductive medicine, spontaneous abortion is still the most frequent complication during pregnancy,» said Jesus Joaquin Hijona Elosegui, a researcher at the Department of Pharmacology of the University of Granada.

In addition to blood tests, patients in the study were asked to participate in ultrasound scans and questionnaires.

These tests allowed the researchers to analyse valuable information about other variables such as homocysteine, iodine and folate supplements, thyroid dysfunction and the consumption of drugs in the crucial first weeks of pregnancy – when most miscarriages occur.