Introduction: Excessive use of paracetamol with caffeine in Panadol extra during pregnancy increase the risk of spontaneous abortion. Vitamin D stimulates cardiomyocyte proliferation and protects against injury.
Aim of Work: To investigate the effect of maternal exposure to large doses of Panadol extra on the development of the embryonic hearts of rat's offspring and possible protective effects of vitamin D.
Material and Methods: Forty-five albino rats; 30 adult females and 15 adult males were used in this study. The pregnant rats were divided into Group I as a control group, Group II (treated group; Panadol extra) received the maximum daily dose (4000mg paracetamol/ 520 mg caffeine) / kg/ day and Group III (protective group; Panadol extra + vitamin D) received previously mentioned dose of Panadol extra plus vitamin D at a dose of 400 IU/kg/day. All the treatments were given by oral gavage from the 1st day of pregnancy until day 19. Pregnant rats from all groups were sacrificed on day 19 of pregnancy and their pups were extracted & weighted, then sacrificed. Blood samples were taken for biochemical assessment. Sections from the hearts were stained (H&E, Eosin & Mallory's trichrome stain), Immunohistochemical (alpha-smooth muscles) for histopathological and morphometric studies.
Results: Group (II) revealed changes of blood gases as PH, increase in PCO2, decrease PO2, high lipid profile, and increase Creatinine kinase-MB. There were different histopathological changes as cardiomyocyte damage, necrosis, and inflammation with increased fibrosis by Mallory stain. The morphometric results revealed an enlarged size of cardiac cells, decreased proliferation, and maturation. All these results were greatly improved in the group (III) when concomitant administration of vitamin D in the last protective group.
Conclusion: Prolonged and excessive maternal use of Panadol extra greatly affect heart development. Vitamin D has a potential effect on cardiac regeneration and development.