sFlt-1/PlGF ratio as a prognostic marker of adverse outcomes in women with early-onset preeclampsia

Soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt-1) is an anti-angiogenic factor released in higher amounts by preeclamptic placentas and it has been implicated in the endothelial dysfunction observed in the disease. In this study we evaluated if circulating sFlt-1/PlGF ratio is useful to predict adverse outcomes in women with early-onset preeclampsia. This is a cohort study of 88 preeclamptic women with singleton pregnancies at ⩽35 weeks of gestation. According to definitions used, adverse outcomes occurred in 46.5% (N = 43) of the patients. The median sFlt1/PlGF ratio (25th–75th centile) for all patients evaluated was of 42.26 (13.1–226.1). The median sFlt-1/PlGF ratio among women who had any adverse outcome (N = 43) versus no adverse outcomes (N = 45) was of 227.6 (80.3–346.1) versus 14.4 (3.35–30.0), (P < 0.0001). According to our analyses a sFlt-1/PlGF ratio cut-point of ⩾85 gave a sensitivity of 74.0% and specificity of 97.0%. The positive predictive value and the negative predictive value were 96.0% and 80.0%, respectively. The median sFlt-1/PlGF ratio (25th–75th centile) for patients who delivered within <7 days was 260.0 (127.7–404.7) as compared to 14.4 (3.35–34.97) for those patients who delivered within two weeks or more (P < 0.0001). Our results suggest that sFlt-1/PlGF ratio is a promising marker for adverse outcomes in women with early-onset preeclampsia.