First-trimester screening for preeclampsia and
small-for-gestational-age: A comparison of the Gaussian and FMF
algorithms
Abstract
Objective: To compare the predictive accuracy of the Gaussian and FMF
algorithms for preeclampsia (PE) and small for gestational age fetuses
(SGA). Design: Secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study.
Setting: Tertiary referral hospital. Population: 2641 singleton
pregnancies attending routine first-trimester scan from October 2015 to
September 2017. Methods: Maternal characteristics, mean arterial blood
pressure (MAP), and mean uterine artery pulsatility index (UtAPI) were
recorded at the first-trimester scan. Serum placental growth factor
(PlGF) and pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) were assessed
between 8+0 and 13+6 weeks of gestation. Main outcome measures: The
areas under the curve (AUC) for the predictive performance for
early-onset (delivery <34 weeks) and preterm (delivery
<37 weeks) PE, and early-onset (delivery <32 weeks)
and preterm (delivery <37 weeks) SGA, were calculated with the
Gaussian and FMF algorithms, and were subsequently compared. Results:
Among the 2641 participants, 30 (1.14%) developed preterm PE, including
11 (0.42%) early-onset PE. Among the 2483 newborns, 44 (1.77%) were
preterm SGA, including eight (0.32%) early-onset SGA. The FMF and the
Gaussian algorithm showed a similar predictive performance for most
outcomes and marker combinations. Conclusions: This study shows that the
first-trimester Gaussian and FMF algorithms have similar performances
for PE and SGA prediction. Accuracy of the FMF algorithm was similar to
that reported in the original studies, adding evidence to its external
validity. Funding: none Keywords: preeclampsia, screening, PlGF,
early-onset preeclampsia, uterine artery Doppler, first trimester
Tweetable abstract: The first-trimester Gaussian and FMF algorithms have
similar predictive performances for preeclampsia and
small-for-gestational-age fetuses.