Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2024;46:e-rbgo43
In low and middle-income countries such as Brazil, most maternal deaths are related to hypertensive complications. Preeclampsia is the leading cause of maternal mortality and morbidity. Significant proportion is associated with the following factors: lack of identification of high-risk women, lack of adequate prevention, difficulty in maintaining a high-risk prenatal follow-up, delayed diagnosis, insecurity and low use of magnesium sulphate, delayed pregnancy interruption and lack of postpartum follow-up of these high-risk cases. Four major actions are proposed to minimize this alarming clinical picture and reduce the mortality rates due to preeclampsia, called the "4 P Rule" (Adequate Prevention – Vigilant Prenatal Care – Timely Delivery (Parturition) – Safe Postpartum). From this simple "rule" we can open a range of important processes and reminders that may help in the guidance of preeclampsia management.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2022;44(3):231-237
To analyze whether acetylsalicylic (ASA) intake modifies the mean uterine arteries pulsatility index (UtA-PI) at the 2nd or 3rd trimester in a cohort of pregnant women with abnormal mean UtA-PI at between 11 and 14 weeks of gestation.
This is a retrospective cohort study. Singleton pregnancies with abnormal mean UtA-PI at between 11 and 14 weeks of gestation were studied. The participants were divided into 3 groups: 1) If the participant did not take ASA during pregnancy; 2) If the participant took ASA before 14 weeks of gestation; and 3) If the participant took ASA after 14 weeks of gestation. The mean UtA-PI was evaluated at the 2nd and 3rd trimesters, and it was considered to improve when it decreased below the 95th percentile. The prevalence ratio (PR) and the number needed to treat (NNT) werecalculated.
A total of 72 participants with a mean UtA-PI>95th percentile at the 1st trimester of gestation were evaluated. Out of the 18 participants who took ASA, 8 participants started it before 14 weeks of gestation and 10 after. A total of 33.3% of these participants had improved the mean UtA-PI at the 2nd and 3rd trimesters of gestation, although it was not statistically significant (p=0.154). The prevalence ratio was 0.95 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.31-1.89), but between the 1st and 2nd trimesters of gestation, the PR was 0.92 (95%CI: 0.21-0.99) and it was statistically significant.
The present work demonstrates a modification of the mean UtA-PI in participants who took ASA compared with those who did not. It is important to check if ASA can modify the normal limits of uterine arteries because this could have an impact on surveillance.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2021;43(1):61-65
Pre-eclampsia (PE) is a severe disorder that affects up to 8% of all pregnancies and represents an important cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. The screening of the disease is a subject of studies, but the complexity and uncertainties regarding its etiology make this objective a difficult task. In addition, the costs related to screening protocols, the heterogeneity of the most affected populations and the lack of highly effective prevention methods reduce the potential of current available algorithms for screening. Thus, the National Specialized Commission of Hypertension in Pregnancy of the Brazilian Association of Gynecology and Obstetrics Federation (Febrasgo, in the Portuguese acronym) (NSC Hypertension in Pregnancy of the Febrasgo) considers that there are no screening algorithms to be implemented in the country to date and advocates that Aspirin and calcium should be widely used.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2020;42(7):390-396
Preeclampsia is a major cause of perinatal and maternal morbidity and mortality. Our objective is to assess the performance of a combined screening test for preeclampsia in the first trimester and the prophylactic use of low-dose aspirin.
Prospective study of all women attending our hospital for the first-trimester screening of aneuploidies, between March 2017 and February 2018 (n = 1,297). The exclusion criteria weremultiple pregnancy andmajor fetal abnormalities. Preeclampsia screening was performed with an algorithm that includes maternal characteristics, and biophysical and biochemical biomarkers. High-risk was defined as a risk ≥ 1:50 of earlyonset preeclampsia (before 34 weeks), in which cases low-dose aspirin (150mg at night) was offered to these women from screening until 36 weeks.
From the 1,272 enrolled participants, the majority were Caucasian (1,051; 82.6%) and multiparous (658, 51.7%). Fifty patients (3.9%) screened high-risk for preeclampsia, and all started a low-dose aspirin regimen, with good compliance (96%). Early-onset preeclampsia was found in 3 pregnant women (0.24%), and total preeclampsia was diagnosed in 25 (2.02%), compared with 28 (0.75%) cases of early preeclampsia (p = 0.0099) and 98 (2.62%) of total preeclampsia (p = 0.2904) before the implementation of screening.
There was a lower incidence of both, early-onset and total preeclampsia, after the introduction of universal screening and prophylactic use of low-dose aspirin. This reduction was statistically significant in early-onset preeclampsia. The association of a first-trimester combined screening model and aspirin prophylaxis appears to be useful in predicting and reducing the incidence of early-onset preeclampsia, in a routine care setting.