The objective of the present study was to measure the serum level of adiponectin in preeclamptic
Egyptian pregnant women and find the possible correlations of maternal adiponectin level to measured
insulin resistance in such case and to macroscopic features of placentae included in this study. The study population consisted of 30 preeclamptic patients and 30 matched healthy pregnant women
during the third trimester. The results revealed that preeclamptic women were more insulin resistant with a significant decrease in
adiponectin level compared with healthy controls. Correlation analysis presented a significant negative
correlation between adiponectin levels and measured insulin resistance among preeclamptic women. Pregnant women with preeclampsia had lower placental weight and decreased number of cotyledons with
marginal insertion of umbilical cord. The present study did not show any correlations between adiponectin
levels versus macroscopic features of placentae among preeclamptic mothers. It can be concluded that preeclamptic mothers are more insulin resistant, which was reflected through
increased HOMA-IR value; this relationship postulates that insulin resistance may be one of the casual
pathways of preeclampsia. Hypoadiponectinemia may be one of the possible etiologies of preeclampsia. Preeclamptic placentae exhibited definite morphological changes which may be attributed to the vascular
insufficiency of placent