EFFECT OF INTRAVENOUS AMINO ACIDS ON AMNIOTIC FLUID INDEX (AFI) AND MATERNAL OUTCOME IN THIRD TRIMESTER ISOLATED OLIGOHYDRAMNIOS

Abstract

Background: Oligohydramnios is very low levels of amniotic fluid (the fluid in the womb) is a common obstetric problem and is associated with poor outcomes for mother and fetus. Increased intake of amino acids in the mother and other infusion therapies have been proposed as safe methods to increase the amount of amniotic fluid and prolong the pregnancy

Objective: To determine whether amino acid infusion in isolated oligohydramnios can improve amniotic fluid index (AFI) in pregnant women.

Methodology: A descriptive case series was performed at department of Obstetrics & Gynecology at Hameed Latif Hospital/Rashid Latif Medical College in Lahore during July 2025 to October 2025. Eighty women were included who fulfilled the inclusion criteria of a pregnancy. A total of 80 women with intact membranes, singleton pregnancies, gestational age 28-36 weeks and AFI ≤5 cm were eligible to participate. Participants were given an amino acid intravenous infusion alternate days for one week. Ultrasonography was used to assess AFI both before and after therapy. SPSS version 25 was used to analyze the data. Qualitative data were shown as percentages and frequencies while quantitative data were shown as mean and standard deviation. Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test was used to compare the AFI values before and after the therapy.

Results: The participants’ mean age was 27.03 ± 6.41 years, and the mean gestational age was 31.95 ± 2.58 weeks. Of the participants, 60.0% were aged 18–29 years, and 73.8% had parity <3. There was a significant increase in median AFI from 3.62 cm (IQR: 3.01–4.01) before infusion to 4.77 cm (IQR: 4.44–5.66) after treatment (p < 0.001). Improvement in AFI was observed across maternal age, gestational age, and parity categories; however, the magnitude of AFI change did not differ significantly according to maternal age (p = 0.304), gestational age (p = 0.224), or parity (p = 0.189).

Conclusion: Intravenous amino acid infusion was effective in significantly raising the AFI in pregnant women with isolated oligohydramnios. The response to treatment was the same, regardless of parity, gestational age or mother age. More extensive controlled trials are recommended to establish the effects of amino acid infusion on maternal and fetal outcomes, but may be useful as a conservative treatment for the augmentation of amniotic fluid volume.