Erythrocyte omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids profile in Sudanese women with pre-eclampsia.

A case-control study was conducted in Khartoum hospital, Sudan to compare omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids profile in three phospholipid fractions (phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin) using gas chromatography in erythrocytes from 65 pre-eclamptic women and well-matched 60 healthy control pregnant women, both in the third trimester of pregnancy. While levels of arachidonic acid (omega-6 fatty acid) was significantly higher in women with pre-eclampsia in the sphingomyelin fraction only, the levels of eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acid (omega-3 fatty acid) in the three phospholipids fractions were significantly higher in women with pre-eclampsia than in the control group. Both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids profiles were not significantly different between patients with mild (diastolic blood pressure (DBP) <110 mmHg) and severe (DBP > or = 110 mmHg) pre-eclampsia.