Human preterm labor is a syndrome that may arise from different causes. Before 30 weeks of gestation, infection appears to predominate amongst these. In later gestation, premature activation of the fetal HPA axis in response to an adverse intrauterine environment, e.g. hypoxemia, undernutrition (UN) or even infection, may underlie the stimulus to prematurity. A third pathway clearly involves vascular thrombotic processes. Tests on sheep have been shown to there is a premature birth which is a significant change was associated with precocious increases in adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol in the fetal circulation, and increased levels of mRNA encoding proopiomelanocortin (POMC) and prohormone convertase-1 (PC-1) in the pars intermedia of the fetal pituitary. It would seem that these different pathways may occur separately, or be activated to different degrees in the same patient.
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THE IMPACT OF UNDERNUTRITION ON THE ACTIVATION OF PREMATURE BIRTH AND PROSTAGLANDIN PATHWAY Šulović N. 1 , Šulović Lj. 2 , Relić G. 1 1 Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics.
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