Uterine Artery Doppler Ultrasonography for First Trimester Prediction of Preeclampsia in Individuals at Risk from Low-Resource Settings

Abstract

<i>Background and objectives:</i> The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential of first trimester uterine artery Doppler ultrasonography for the early prediction of preeclampsia (PE), in at-risk pregnant women. <i>Materials and Methods:</i> This was a prospective longitudinal study, including 120 Caucasian pregnant women with risk factors for PE. The potential of pulsatility indexes (PI) and notch was assessed as a tool for preeclampsia screening. <i>Results:</i> Doppler examination of the uterine artery performed early at 11-14 WA allows the detection of pregnancies that will develop PE with a sensitivity of 61.5% and a specificity of 63.8% based on PI analysis. Predictive power increases slightly by adding bilateral notch (sensitivity = 65.4%; specificity = 66%). <i>Conclusions:</i> Uterine artery Doppler examination is an effective non-invasive screening test for the development of PE in pregnancies at risk, particularly appropriate in health systems with limited means of evaluating other biomarkers.