Abstract
To investigate the influence of fetal sex on maternal testosterone levels throughout pregnancy, blood was sampled from 37 healthy pregnant women from week 14 until term and at 6 weeks postpartum. Testosterone concentrations were measured with a highly specific RIA after chromatographic purification. Mean (±SD) testosterone at the end of gestation was significantly higher compared to non-pregnant values (3.10±2.38nM/1, n = 32 vs 1.14 ± 1.06 nM/1, n = 35). It appeared that in women carrying a male fetus testosterone levels gradually increased during pregnancy up to 3.99 ± 2.72 nM/1. In women carrying a female fetus the levels decreased after the first trimester from 2.44 nM/1 to 1.80 nM/1. A statistically significant difference ( P < 0.01) existed in maternal testosterone concentrations between both groups during the second half of pregnancy.
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