| dc.description.abstract | Background: Preeclampsia is a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy that continues to be one of the leading causes of maternal and perinatal mortality worldwide. It contributes to more than 70,000 maternal deaths annually, with a disproportionately high burden in developing countries, including Indonesia. Disturbances in calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) homeostasis have been proposed as contributors to endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and vascular hyperreactivity that characterize the disease.
Objective: This study aimed to determine the association between maternal serum magnesium and calcium levels and the occurrence of preeclampsia among third-trimester pregnant women treated at RSP Prof. Dr. Chairuddin P. Lubis, Universitas Sumatera Utara.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted between June and December 2025, involving 48 third-trimester pregnant women—24 with preeclampsia and 24 with normotensive pregnancies—recruited by consecutive sampling. Serum calcium and magnesium concentrations were measured using spectrophotometric methods. Data were analyzed using t-tests, Mann–Whitney U, and Pearson correlation. The calcium-to-magnesium (Ca/Mg) ratio was computed to explore its predictive association with preeclampsia. Ethical approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Sumatera Utara (No. as stated in thesis).
Results: The mean serum magnesium level was comparable between preeclamptic and normotensive women (1.92 ± 0.16 mEq/L vs. 1.89 ± 0.19 mEq/L, p = 0.893). Serum calcium levels, however, were significantly higher among preeclamptic women (9.10 ± 0.83 mg/dL) compared with controls (8.53 ± 0.52 mg/dL, p = 0.008). The mean Ca/Mg ratio was elevated in the preeclampsia group (4.78 ± 0.45 vs. 4.48 ± 0.37; p = 0.024). Pearson correlation revealed a positive relationship between the Ca/Mg ratio and systolic blood pressure (r = 0.426, p = 0.002).
Conclusion: Serum calcium and the Ca/Mg ratio were significantly associated with preeclampsia, whereas magnesium alone was not. These findings indicate that an imbalance between vasoconstrictive calcium and vasodilatory magnesium may underlie endothelial dysfunction in preeclampsia. The Ca/Mg ratio may serve as a potential biochemical marker for early risk stratification among pregnant women.
Keywords: Preeclampsia, Magnesium, Calcium, Calcium/Magnesium ratio, Pregnancy, Maternal vascular dysfunction | en_US |
