UI researchers find early predictor for preeclampsia

[Skidmore]

Some good news that could save the lives of women and babies.

http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/07/ui-researchers-find-early-predictor-preeclampsia-0

University of Iowa researchers have discovered a biomarker that could give expecting mothers and their doctors the first simple blood test to reliably predict that a pregnant woman may develop preeclampsia, at least as early as 6 weeks into the pregnancy.

Preeclampsia is a cardiovascular disorder generally occurring late in pregnancy and often resulting in an early delivery, creating immediate and potentially lifelong risks to both mother and baby. It causes high blood pressure and protein in the urine, and is typically diagnosed in the late second or third trimester of pregnancy. Between 5 and 7 percent of all pregnancies in the United States are affected with preeclampsia, equating to roughly 4,000 pregnancies in Iowa or around 500,000 in the United States per year. More than 100,000 women worldwide die from the disease each year.

In their paper, “Vasopressin in Preeclampsia: A Novel Very-Early Human Pregnancy Biomarker and Clinically-Relevant Mouse Model,” study authors Mark Santillan, assistant professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and a Maternal Fetal Medicine specialist, Justin Grobe, assistant professor of Pharmacology and a Fellow of the American Heart Association (FAHA), and Donna Santillan, research assistant professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, demonstrate that elevated secretion of arginine vasopressin (AVP) can be a very early biomarker of a preeclamptic pregnancy.

[jberryhill]

1. That's a terrible thing

...which often gets written off for too long as just "morning sickness".

[Horse with no Name]

2. That is awesome!

There is a potential to save a lot of lives in this research. Most excellent!