Role of Selenium in Prevention of Pre-Eclampsia

Preeclampsia remains a major obstetric complication affecting 5-10% of pregnancies worldwide, contributing significantly to maternal and fetal morbidity. Emerging evidence suggests selenium deficiency may play a pathogenic role through increased oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction. This review evaluates current evidence on selenium supplementation for preeclampsia prevention. This study aimed to assess the role of selenium supplementation in prevention of pre- eclampsia in primigravida women. Subjects and methods: An analysis of all available research, including both experimental and observational studies (2000-2023) from PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Scopus. Inclusion criteria focused on studies examining selenium supplementation (any dosage) versus placebo/no intervention in pregnant women, with preeclampsia as a primary outcome. Data were extracted from 15 qualifying studies (10 RCTs, 5 cohort studies) and analyzed for consistency of effects across populations. Results: Supporting studies (n=9) showed that selenium supplementation (100–200 μg/day) reduced preeclampsia risk by 30–50%, particularly in selenium-deficient populations, through lowering oxidative stress by 45% (p<0.01), improving endothelial function by 28%, and reducing IL-6 by 35%, while null studies (n=6) reported no significant benefit in selenium-replete populations. Conclusion: Current evidence indicates that selenium supplementation may help prevent preeclampsia in selenium-deficient, high-risk populations by modulating key pathogenic mechanisms; however, universal supplementation is not warranted, and future research should establish optimal dosing protocols, develop reliable biomarkers for deficiency screening, and focus randomized controlled trials on high-risk subgroups