Maternal placi protein levels in early- and late-onset preeclampsia

Objectives: The objective of this study was to determine the maternal PLAC1 protein levels in early and late onset preec­lampsia. Material and methods: A total of 135 pregnant women were included in the study, of which 55 were at < 34 weeks of gesta­tion and 80 were at ≥ 34 weeks of gestation, between June and November 2014 were recruited in this case control study. Results: Analysis of maternal serum PLAC1 levels did not reveal any significant differences between early onset PE and controls (p = 0.422). However, late onset PE patients exhibited significantly elevated levels of PLAC1, in comparison with healthy controls (p = 0.026). The difference in PLAC1 levels between early onset PE and late onset PE was also significant (p = 0.001). Area under ROC curve of PLAC1 for early and late onset PE was 0.563 and 0.646 with p values of 0.422 and 0.026 respectively. Area under ROC curve of PLAC1 in PE was 0.613 with p value = 0.024. The cutoff value for PLAC1 was 6.19 ng/mL with sensitivity: 56% (95% CI 44.1–67.3) and specificity: 63 %; (95% CI 49.9–75.1) and diagnostic odds ratio: 2.2 (95% CI 1.1–4.4) (p value = 0.037). The cutoff value for PLAC1 was 7.2 ng/mL with sensitivity: 43% (95% CI 31.5–54.6) and specificity: 78% (95% CI 65.5–87.5) and diagnostic odds ratio: 2.69 (95% CI 1.25–5.79) (p value = 0.016) Conclusion: In conclusion, the results of the current study showed that PLAC1 protein levels were significantly elevated in pregnant women with late onset PE in comparison with healthy control group

The evaluation of serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels in pregnant women with hyperemesis gravidarum

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which is considered a cause of conditions such as depression and eating disorders, and hyperemesis gravidarum (HG). Material and methods: This study was conducted as a prospective study at Ankara Ataturk Training and Research Hospital in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The study included 73 pregnant women with singleton pregnancies (32 pregnant women with HG and 41 pregnant women without hyperemesis). Serum BDNF levels were compared between the two groups. Results: The mean age of the study group was 27.3 ± 3.5 years and the body mass index (BMI) was 22.4 ± 2.7 kg/m2. There is no statistically significant difference between the study group and the control group in terms of demographic data (p > 0.05). The pregnant women with HG were found to have significantly higher serum BDNF levels compared to the control group (349.1 ± 94.6 pg/mL vs 292. 3± 86.01, p = 0.009) Conclusions: Serum BDNF levels that are low in psychiatric disorders such as depression or anxiety were found as high in pregnant women with HG

Efficacy of blood parameters in predicting the severity of gestational hypertension and preeclampsia

The aim of this retrospective study was to demonstrate the effectiveness of APRI, DNI, NLR, PLR, and PDW in predicting the severity of gestational hypertension (GHT) and PE and to determine whether these factors can be used as screening tools. Normotensive pregnant women (n = 792) served as the control group. 1,213 single pregnant women who met the following criteria for a GHT diagnosis were included in the study group. We found a significantly higher mean PLR and NLR value. The mean PDW value was significantly lower in the control group than in the other groups. The SPE group had a significantly higher mean APRI score. The groups did not differ by their DNI. We determined PDW and APRI as independent parameters that predicted SPE by multiple logistic regression analysis. In retrospective analysis of blood samples taken from these participants below week 20, we found that the APRI value differed significantly between the control and SPE groups. NLR, PLR, DNI, and PDW had no clinical significance. We further suggested that APRI may provide a clinical indication of progression from hypertensive pregnancy disorders to SPE, which seems to be a promising implication that should be verified by further studies.IMPACT STATEMENT What is already known on this subject? Hypertensive disorders in pregnancy are a major cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. Screening pregnant women for risk factors for developing hypertensive disorders and identifying women at high risk in early pregnancy and initiating prophylactic treatment are important for pregnancy monitoring and planning in experienced centres. Because only 30% of women who will develop preeclampsia can be predicted by risk factors, the combined use of laboratory tests and imaging with risk factors to calculate a woman’s risk of developing preeclampsia is currently being investigated. However, no proven marker has yet been found. What do the results of this study add? In our study, we found that NLR, PLR, DNI, and PDW have no clinical significance in assessing the risk of developing gestational hypertension and preeclampsia and in predicting the severity of preeclampsia. However, in our study, we found that APRI can provide a clinical indication of the progression of hypertensive pregnancy to SPE. What are the implications of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? This study represents an important contribution to the literature because it is the first study to examine the association between APRI and HT in pregnancy