"Longitudinal course of sex steroids from pregnancy to postpartum".

A comprehensive understanding of the influence of SS levels on associated maternal and fetal pathologies is currently hindered by two main factors. First, reported SS levels vary widely during the peripartum period. Second, the current state of knowledge on how SS are associated with pathologies in mothers and babies is largely based on correlational studies, and causality thus remains unclear. Consequently, we recommend the development of a systematic reference framework that follows the suggestions presented in this review. This would enable the establishment of SS reference values for a healthy population, resulting in the possibility to draw conclusions about deviations and related pathologies.