EJMS

Abstract

Introduction: Reported incidence of preeclampsia ranges from 2% to 7% depending on the diagnostic criteria and the population studied. It is principally a disease of primigravida and rarely presents before 20 weeks' gestation. As preeclampsia is a disease associated with significant maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality so it is an ideal disorder to establish and evaluate predictive tests. Aim of the work: The aim of the study was to assess the presence of free fetal hemoglobin in maternal blood and its role as a biomarker for pregnancy complicated with preeclampsia and/or preeclampsia. Materials: The study included one hundred pregnant women recruited from the antenatal care clinic of El-Shatby Maternity University Hospital. Cases were divided into two groups: Group (A); sixty cases with signs and symptoms of mild preeclampsia, severe preeclampsia and/or eclampsia, Group (B); control group included forty cases with normal blood pressure measurement or hypertension with no proteinuria (non-proteinuric gestational hypertension). Methods: Free fetal hemoglobin (Hb-F) in maternal venous blood was differentiated from the adult form (Hb-A) by ELISA Quantitation Set. Results: The study was a case control study between two groups As regard free HbF level in maternal blood between cases & controls; calculated p value was 0.003 (i.e.: statistically significant). At the calculated cutoff value ≥ 1005, the specificity & sensitivity were 100% & 56.3 % respectively and the positive & negative Likelihood Ratio (LR+) & (LR-) are 14.1 & 0.46 respectively. Conclusion: Fetal hemoglobin can be biochemically detected in maternal blood during the third trimester and can be used to differentiate between normal pregnancy and pregnancy complicated with preeclampsia and/or eclampsia.