Lipoprotein(a) deposition in the uteroplacental bed and in basal plate uteroplacental arteries in normal and complicated pregnancies

Summary Lipoprotein(a) (lp(a)) deposition, a marker of vascular wall damage, was studied in (1) Placental bed biopsies (9 normal term pregnancies and 12 proteinuric preeclampsia); (2) Placental basal plates from consecutive births in March–June, 1995 (14 normal term births, 6 term preeclampsia, 4 preterm preeclampsia, and 11 spontaneous preterm births); and (3) 4 implantation sites obtained at least 2 weeks post partum and 2 peripartum hysterectomies performed due to intractable hemorrhage. Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded sections were stained for lp(a). Lp(a) was detected in 2/69 (3%) normotensive placental bed uteroplacental or spiral arteries and in 71/179 (40%) preeclamptic placental bed uteroplacental or spiral arteries (p