Background: Pre-eclampsia is often referred to as disease of theories as the precise factors involved in its pathogenesis are unclear. While alterations in calcium metabolism have been linked with preeclampsia, the role of calcium in the development of the disease remains uncertain.  
Objectives: This study aimed to compare the clinical features and serum calcium levels of pre-eclamptic women with normotensive controls.
Patients and methods: The study was a case-control study among patients with pre-eclampsia and healthy normotensive women.
Results: Ninety-five preeclamptic patients and 95 matched controls participated in the study. More than half (61.1%) of the pre-eclamptic women were unbooked while only about one-third (30.5%) of the normotensive women were unbooked (P<0.001). Pre-eclamptic women had significantly shorter duration of cohabitation with biological fathers of their foetuses than the normotensive controls. Pre-eclamptic patients were thrice more likely to have family history of hypertension than the control group (14.7% vs 4.2% P=0.013). Similarly, the mean serum calcium levels were statistically significantly lower in preeclamptic patients (1.87± 0.27 mmol/L) compared to the pregnant normotensive controls (2.33±0.28 mmol/L).
Conclusion: Serum calcium levels were significantly lower in pre-eclamptic women compared to the normotensive controls in the study.