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What Causes Elevated Copper Levels In Blood During Pregnancy?

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Posted on Mon, 18 May 2015
Question: My daughter is in 6th month of preganacy. she just took a blood test and it showed above normal level of copper. She was exposed to a product called "copper green" which was mistakenly used to preserve wood particles in in the crawl space of her house.
How dangerous is this?
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Answered by Dr. Panagiotis Zografakis (1 hour later)
Brief Answer:
Copper may be elevated x2-3 during pregnancy

Detailed Answer:
Hello,

I understand your concerns. Unless she's having clinical or laboratory findings besides the copper levels, you shouldn't worry too much because pregnancy is a potential cause of increased copper levels in the blood. During the third trimester in particular, the copper value may be (normally) increased 2-3 times above normal values. This means that with a normal range of 80-155 micrograms/dL, the value of 288 is not that high actually!

If there is suspicion (based on clinical or laboratory grounds) that this is not the cause, then further investigation might be needed. I doubt if she'll need it though.

Best wishes for her pregnancy!
Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Answered by
Dr.
Dr. Panagiotis Zografakis

Internal Medicine Specialist

Practicing since :1999

Answered : 3814 Questions

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What Causes Elevated Copper Levels In Blood During Pregnancy?

Brief Answer: Copper may be elevated x2-3 during pregnancy Detailed Answer: Hello, I understand your concerns. Unless she's having clinical or laboratory findings besides the copper levels, you shouldn't worry too much because pregnancy is a potential cause of increased copper levels in the blood. During the third trimester in particular, the copper value may be (normally) increased 2-3 times above normal values. This means that with a normal range of 80-155 micrograms/dL, the value of 288 is not that high actually! If there is suspicion (based on clinical or laboratory grounds) that this is not the cause, then further investigation might be needed. I doubt if she'll need it though. Best wishes for her pregnancy!