Soluble endoglin in urine as an early-pregnancy preeclampsia marker: antenatal longitudinal feasibility study.

This study aimed to evaluate soluble endoglin (sEng) in urine as a preeclampsia predictor. Ninety-three pregnant women at risk for preeclampsia were followed. Spot urine sample ELISA analysis before 20 weeks of gestation was done to assess protein levels. Logistic regression analysis evaluated associations between preeclampsia with sEng/creatinine ratio, pg/mg, adjusted for risk factors. Preeclampsia incidence was 22.8% (20/92). Urinary sEng/creatinine (pg/mg) 0.001 (95% CI 0.001-0.136) was associated, adjusted for body mass index > 28 kg/m2 OR 6.44 (95% CI 1.11-37.47) and mean arterial pressure OR 1.20 (1.07-1.35). During the first half of gestation sEng urinary excretion was lower in pregnant women developing preeclampsia.Impact statementWhat is already known on this subject? The angiogenesis factors present in the plasma of pregnant women have shown good preclinical predictors of preeclampsia. Studies on urinary markers in pregnancy are infrequent, despite the ease of obtaining urine specimens.What do the results of this study add? Values of the sEng/creatinine ratio during the first half of pregnancy were related to a higher chance of preeclampsia occurring when it was evaluated alone or adjusted by body mass index and mean arterial pressure values.What are the implications of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? The potential benefits of a urinary test compared to one of the blood levels include its non-invasive nature and ease of performing the test, even during prenatal care. Future research is expected to evaluate the sEng/creatinine ratio relevance to improve clinical scores of preeclampsia prediction for the identification of women at risk for this disease.

Perinatal risk factors and Apgar score ≤ 3 in first minute of life in a referral tertiary obstetric and neonatal hospital.

This study aimed to identify the maternal, labour and newborn risk factors associated with an Apgar score of ≤3 in the first minute of life. This was a cross-sectional evaluation from an internal database information system in a tertiary referral obstetric and neonatal centre. Newborns with gestational age ≥24 weeks and birth weight ≥500 g with a registered Apgar score in the first minute of life were included. A total of 4475 newborns had an Apgar score >3 and 154 newborns had an Apgar score ≤3 in the first minute of life. A multivariate analysis revealed that eclampsia (OR = 31.53), twin pregnancy (OR = 7.06), analgesia (OR = 1.97), prematurity (OR = 2.00) and caesarean section (OR = 2.06) were risk factors for an Apgar score ≤3 in the first minute of life. Identification of these risk factors indicates prompt assistance during prenatal and labour care to prevent neonatal hypoxia and low Apgar scores, identifying newborns that may need resuscitation procedures.Impact StatementWhat is already known on this subject? Adequate prenatal care and proper labour management are the main factors that reduce the risk of complications at birth. The Apgar score at the first minute of life reflects conditions during labour but it is not a parameter that indicates resuscitation procedures. Previous studies have reported the association Apgar score at five minutes of life with the neonatal outcome.What the results of this study add? This study identifies risk factors associated with an Apgar score ≤3 in the first minute of life in a tertiary referral hospital. Eclampsia was the greatest independent risk factor, increasing by 31 times the risk of having an Apgar score ≤3 in the first minute of life.What the implications are of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? Identification of these risk factors, especially prompt treatment antenataly and during labour for hypertensive pregnant women, can prevent neonatal hypoxia and reduce the number of newborns that may need resuscitation procedures.