A Cochrane review [Abstract] 1 included 4 studies with a total of 566 women either at high risk of pre-eclampsia or with established pre-eclampsia. All trials assessed vitamin E in combination with other supplements and two trials were published in abstract form only. No difference was found between women supplemented with vitamin E in combination with other supplements during pregnancy compared with placebo for the risk of stillbirth (relative risk (RR) was 0.77, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 0.35 to 1.71, two trials, 339 women), neonatal death (RR 5.00, 95% CI 0.64 to 39.06, one trial, 40 women), perinatal death (RR 1.29, 95% CI 0.67 to 2.48, one trial, 56 women), preterm birth (RR 1.29, 95% CI 0.78 to 2.15, two trials, 383 women), intrauterine growth restriction (RR 0.72, 95% CI 0.49 to 1.04, two trials, 383 women) or birthweight (weighted mean difference -139.00 g, 95% CI -517.68 to 239.68, one trial, 100 women), using fixed-effect models. Substantial heterogeneity was found for pre-eclampsia. Women supplemented with vitamin E in combination with other supplements compared with placebo were at decreased risk of developing clinical pre-eclampsia (RR 0.44, 95% CI 0.27 to 0.71, three trials, 510 women) using fixed-effect models; however, this difference could not be demonstrated when using random-effects models (RR 0.44, 95% CI 0.16 to 1.22, three trials, 510 women). There were no differences between women supplemented with vitamin E compared with placebo for any of the secondary outcomes.
Primary/Secondary Keywords