Contingent screening in stratification of pregnancy care based on risk of pre-eclampsia at 19-24 weeks' gestation.

OBJECTIVE

To explore the possibility of carrying out routine screening for pre-eclampsia (PE) with delivery at < 28, < 32, < 36 weeks' gestation by maternal factors, uterine artery pulsatility index (UtA-PI) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) in all pregnancies and reserving measurements of placental growth factor (PlGF) and soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) for only a subgroup of the population.

METHODS

This was a prospective observational study in two UK maternity hospitals involving women with singleton pregnancy attending for routine assessment at 19-24 weeks' gestation. The improvement in performance of screening for PE, at fixed risk cut-offs, by the addition of serum PlGF and sFlt-1 to screening by maternal factors, UtA-PI and MAP, was estimated. We examined a policy of contingent screening in which biochemical testing was reserved for only a subgroup of the population. The main outcome measures were the additional contribution of PlGF and sFlt-1 to the performance of screening for PE and the proportion of the population requiring measurement of PlGF and sFlt-1 for maximum performance of screening.

RESULTS

The study population included 37 886 singleton pregnancies. At each risk cut-off, the highest detection rates for delivery with PE and the lowest screen-positive rates were achieved in screening with maternal factors, UtA-PI, MAP, PlGF and sFlt-1. The maximum performance by such screening was also achieved by contingent screening in which PlGF and sFlt-1 were measured in only about 40% of the population.

CONCLUSION

The performance of screening for PE by a combination of maternal factors, UtA-PI and MAP is improved by measurement of PlGF and sFlt-1 in about 40% of the population. © 2021 International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.