Early Test for Preeclampsia in Development

An early test for preeclampsia could be just 5 years in the future, allowing for earlier intervention and monitoring, according to researchers at Bristol University and the University of Liepzig.

Between 5 and 8% of all pregnancies lead to the condition known as preeclampsia, a hypertension condition potentially fatal for both mother and child. Currently, the testing method available is only accurate around the twentieth week of pregnancy - long after symptoms may have already started, and dangerous rises in blood pressure are already occurring.

Conservative estimates put the number of deaths worldwide from preeclampsia at around 76,000 mothers and 500,000 infants a year.

According to Dr. Victoria Bills, who led the research team, they may have discovered a unique protein in the mother's blood that might let physicians know that the mother is at risk of developing preeclampsia much earlier in pregnancy.

"I would certainly hope that within my lifetime as an obstetrician - potentially in the next five to ten years - that possibly we may be able to develop a simple blood test which we can offer to women as early as 12 weeks in order to quantify whether they are at high-risk of developing preeclampsia later on in that pregnancy ," Bills told the BBC.

Why preeclampsia occurs is unknown; however, the discovery of this unique protein has researchers hopeful that they will be able to ferret out the root cause - and find a way to block it if it occurs. Women with preeclampsia were found to have lower levels of the protein during the first trimester - when current tests are unable to detect the condition.

Preeclampsia only occurs during pregnancy, and currently the only treatment is low-dose aspirin which helps alleviate some of the symptoms. Symptoms of preeclampsia include swelling, sudden weight gain, headaches and changes in vision. However, in rapidly progressing preeclampsia, the only symptom might be the characteristic rise in blood pressure. The Preeclampsia Foundation estimates that 200,000 cases occur in the United States every year, and is a leading cause of infant and maternal death during pregnancy. It impacts the lives of about as many women as breast cancer every year.

Starting prophylactic doses of low-dose aspirin early helps control the condition, and decreases the likelihood of preeclampsia becoming more severe. Preeclampsia can affect a patient's renal function (kidneys), liver, and other vital organs. If untreated, preeclampsia can lead to seizures (eclampsia), cerebral hemorrhage (stroke), heart or kidney failure, and death.