COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE LEVELS OF PREGNANCY-ASSOCIATED α 2-GLYCOPROTEIN, α 2-MACROGLOBULIN, AND SOME CYTOKINES IN PREGNANT WOMEN AND WOMEN USING COMBINED ORAL CONTRACEPTIVES

Objective. To comparatively study changes in the level of pregnancy-associated α 2-glycoprotein (a 2-GP), α 2-macroglobulin (α-MG), and interleukins (IL) (tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), IL-6, and interferon-γ) in the peripheral blood of women with physiological pregnancy and those receiving microdose combined oral contraceptives (COCs). Subject and methods. Examinations were made in 175 reproductive-aged women: 151 first-to-third trimester pregnant women and 24 non-pregnant women taking for 9-12 months COCs containing 20 μg ethynyl estradiol (a gestagenic component of 150 μg desogestrel or 100 μg levonorgestrel). Results. The concentrations of a2-MG, a2-GP, TNF-a, and IL-6 increased in pregnancy, reaching their peak in its third trimester (1.6-, 26-, 13-, and 40-fold, respectively). The intake of COCs was accompanied by a 3- to 40-fold rise only in the blood α-GP levels of 42-83% of the women and depended on the combination of ethynyl estradiol and the certain type of a gestagenic component in the drug. Conclusion. The findings are evidence in favor of the safety of using COCs during a year and the term «pregnancy imitation» in non-pregnant women taking them.

physiological pregnancy, microdose combined oral contraceptives, pregnancy-associated α -glycoprotein, α-macroglobulin, cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-α, nterleukin-6, and interferon-γ)