Screen for Vit D in OB?

Hypertensive Disorders in Pregnancy/Preeclampsia is a persistent problem, world-wide. Over the last decade, studies have highlighted the role of vitamin D in modulating several mechanisms associated with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, including but not limited to vessel compliance, the maternal immune response, the renin angiotensin response, and placental implantation and angiogenesis. There has also been published concern that maternal vitamin D deficiency may be associated with childhood neurodevelopmental issues including autism. However, the last ACOG CO on UNIVERSAL SCREENING for vitamin D in pregnancy was in 2011…this stated that UNIVERSAL screening is just not recommended (FYI, this was reaffirmed 2021, and is currently being reaffirmed by the OB committee). But this is different than targeted screening. Since the ACOG stance in 2011, despite RCTs of vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy, everything has changed and yet nothing has changed regarding the approach to screening for vitamin D deficiency. Should vitamin D levels be assessed? Are the cutoffs for vitamin D insufficiency and deficiency the same in pregnant patients? Who is the ideal pregnant patient for vitamin D intervention? How can the intervention be optimized? And what’s that link between maternal vit D deficiency and the child’s neurodevelopmental outcomes? There is data to answer these questions, and we will lay it all out in this episode.