Effect of Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy on Outcome and Relative Telomere Length in Preterm Infants

Background: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy(HDP) are the most common obstetric complications and may cause severe neonatal morbidity, leading to adverse long-term outcomes. Telomere, as a potential biomarker reflecting cellular aging and future health risks, its length can indirectly indicate the long-term prognosis of newborns. Although significant progress has been made in this field, the impact of gestational hypertension on the prognosis of premature infants and telomere length (TL) still requires further exploration. This article mainly conducts a preliminary exploration of the effects of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) on preterm infant outcomes and telomere length (TL). Methods: A total of 128 preterm infants born between January 2022 and December 2023 were included.The included subjects were divided into the hypertensive disorders of pregnancy(HDP) group and the no-hypertensive disorders of pregnancy(NHDP) group based on whether the mother has gestational hypertension. Maternal and neonatal clinical data were collected and TL was measured from infant peripheral blood using quantitative PCR. Statistical analyses included chi-square tests for categorical data and t-tests for continuous variables. Results: 1 The HDP group had a significantly higher rate of cesarean delivery (100% vs. 74.7%, P < 0.001) and congenital heart malformations (12.2% vs. 2.0%, P =0.013), along with lower birth weight (1.68 ± 0.50 kg vs. 2.08 ± 0.75 kg, P = 0.001) compared with the NHDP group. 2 TL was shorter in the HDP group than in the NHDP group (1.917 ± 0.792 vs 2.249 ± 0.797, P = 0.024). Infemale neonates, the TL in the HDP group was significantly shorter than that in the NHDP group(1.930 ± 0.697 vs 2.405 ± 0.684, P = 0.023). In male neonates,there was no TL difference between the HDP group and the NHDP group. There was no TL difference between genders in the HDP group and the NHDP group. Conclusion: HDP can lead to an increase in the rate of cesarean section, an elevated risk of congenital heart defects in newborns, and a decrease in birth weight. HDP can lead to shortened TL in premature infants, especially in female infants.