The finding that low plasma VEGF165b (vascular endothelial growth factor) in the first trimester is a predictive marker for pre-eclampsia [1] is very interesting. Although aspirin therapy was suggested as an appropriate response if plasma VEGF165b is low, there is a significant risk of gastrointestinal tract bleeding from aspirin.
A risk factor for pre-eclampsia is low serum 25(OH)D (25-hydroxyvitamin D). In a nested case-control study of pregnant women followed from less than 16 weeks of gestation to delivery, a 20 ng/ml decline in 25(OH)D increased the risk of pre-eclampsia to an adjusted odds ratio of 2.4 (95% confidence interval, 1.1–5.4) [2]. On the basis of this observation, a search of Pubmed for papers reporting an effect of vitamin D on VEGF was done, revealing several such reports, for example Cardus et al. [3].
It has been suggested that pregnant and...
