Human placental lactogen in pre-eclampsia.

Serum placental lactogen (hPL) was measured in serial blood samples obtained from 663 pregnant women at weekly intervals from 36 to 40 weeks. The group included 231 women with pre-eclampsia. Levels of hPL were significantly elevated in primigravidae with this condition but not in multigravidae. In all groups hPL levels were significantly reduced in association with growth retardation, but the clinical value of this observation appeared to be greater in multigravidae than in primigravidae. It is suggested that in primigravidae with pre-eclampsia maternal hPL levels reflect both the pathology of the disease as well as the condition of the fetus.