Blood Tests Could Predict Complications in Pregnancy

Researchers have found that high blood levels of two different proteins may predict the onset of preeclampsia, a very dangerous complication of pregnancy that could lead to premature births and cesarean sections increasing the risk of birth defects such as cerebral palsy.

The findings, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, suggests that the blood tests could be a potential indicator of the often unpredictable condition.

Nearly 8 percent of women in the world suffer from preeclampsia, which often results in preterm deliveries. The condition causes a rapid rise in high blood pressure and a spike in protein found in urine.

Lead researcher Dr. Richard J. Levine, a senior investigator at the National Institutes of Health, and his colleagues evaluated the data from five different groups of women including those with preeclampsia, those with pregnancy-related high blood pressure, and those with normal blood pressure, among others.

Blood samples were taken and the levels of two proteins—endoglin and sF1t1—were compared.

According to Levine, the levels of protein “started going up [in the women] two or three months before they developed the disease. So that gives us reason to believe we can identify women who will subsequently develop preeclampsia.”

Furthermore, the study found that women who developed the condition had increased levels of sF1t1 as well as endoglin.

Dr. Brian Brost, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Mayo Clinic said that science is “getting closer and closer” to understanding the risks of preeclampsia and predicting it before it occurs.

“There is [now] hope for developing a predictive test as well as a diagnostic one,” said Levine.

If preeclampsia is diagnosed early, a woman may be prescribed medication to decrease her blood pressure and give her some extra time before the delivery. Or if she is nearing the end of her term, a doctor may choose to deliver the baby, decreasing the risk of cerebral palsy in pregnancy and other complications.

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