Dr Lynda Verghese, pictured right, Consultant Obstetrician and Maternal Medicine Lead, and Dr Yee Ping Teoh, pictured left, Consultant Clinical Biochemist, based at Wrexham Maelor Hospital, along with Dawn Hannah, Clinical Educator at Quidel, discuss the results of a pilot study that showed the significant social, economic and health benefits of the timely management of pre-eclampsia.
Patients presenting with symptoms of pre-eclampsia are often sent for overnight observations to monitor changes in parameters, such as maternal blood pressure and urinary protein concentration. The Covid-19 pandemic put unprecedented strain on hospitals to optimise resources and prevent unnecessary inpatient admissions, giving Wrexham Maelor Hospital, North Wales, the impetus to assess the clinical use of point-of-care (POC) placental growth factor (PLGF) testing to evaluate pre-eclampsia in patients sooner and free up hospital beds. This sensitive and rapid quantitative fluorescence immunoassay measures PLGF levels in just 15 minutes, allowing doctors to quickly stratify patients by risk and identify those likely to progress to delivery in 14 days.
The significance of pre-eclampsia
Pre-eclampsia is one of the most common causes of maternal morbidity, affecting up to 6% of pregnancies in the UK, with some cases progressing to severe illness.[1] Thankfully, most mothers with pre-eclampsia will only experience relatively mild complications from the disease, but it is still crucial to diagnose and monitor the condition before it develops into something much more sinister. If left untreated, it can lead to serious physical and psychological consequences for both mother and baby, including intra-uterine growth restriction, preterm birth and placental abruption, requiring urgent admission and an extended stay in a maternity ward or intensive care unit.
Challenges of the diagnostic pathway
Indicators of pre-eclampsia, including high blood pressure and proteinuria (leakage of protein into the urine), are usually identified firs