Abstract
Background: There is increasing body of evidence that maternal caffeine use during pregnancy predisposes the embryo and foetus to spontaneous abortion but data on its influence on foetal morphometry is scarce. Aim: This study aimed to evaluate experimentally the effects of caffeine on morphometric parameters of newborn of Wistar rats. Materials and Methods: Thirty, experimentally naive, adult female Wistar-albino rats weighing 100–150 g were mated. After confirming pregnancy by vaginal plug method, the pregnant rats were randomly assigned into four groups (Group A–D). The dams in Group A served a normal control. They had 0.2 ml/kg body weight of normal saline intraperitoneally from day 9 to 20. Experimental Group B rats had 25 mg/kg body weight of caffeine intraperitoneally. Group C had 50 mg/kg body weight of caffeine intraperitoneally and Group D dams had 100 mg/kg body weight of caffeine intraperitoneally. Dams in both experimental and control groups were sacrificed on day 20 after caffeine administration. The foetuses were weighed and their crown-rump lengths were measured. Their body mass index of the litters (foetuses) was calculated and their placentas were weighed. Results: The mean crown-rump length of the litters (Group A) was significantly more (5.61 ± 0.29) than the experimental which were 5.10 ± 0.22 cm, 4.72 ± 0.24 cm and 3.81 ± 0.16 cm for Group B, C and D litters, respectively (P < 0.0001). The mean foetal weight of Group A litters was significantly more (1.56 ± 0.38) than the experimental which were 1.25 ± 0.41 g, 1.15 ± 0.77 cm and 0.78 ± 0.34 cm for Group B, C and D litters, respectively (P < 0.0001). The mean placenta weight of the foetuses was significantly lower in the females from the experimental Group B, C and D compared to the control group (P < 0.0001). Conclusion: This study showed a significantly reduced foetal weight, crown-rump length and placenta weight in the offspring of experimental female rats treated with caffeine compared to the control.
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