An international team of scientists looking at data from NZ women who’re part of the SCOPE study have found 14 fatty acids which could help predict the development of preeclampsia in women who’re pregnant for the first time.
Currently, there is no such test, and the only way to treat the disorder is by delivering the child, which can put it at risk.
An excerpt: (read in full here)
“The findings, recently published in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association, came from the Screening for Pregnancy Endpoints study, which was initiated at Auckland University.
“The university’s obstetrics and gynaecology head and co-author of the article, Professor Lesley McCowan, said the findings could be hugely important for identifying women at risk of pre-eclampsia.
“”If we can easily identify at-risk women, we can prescribe preventative therapies and more intensive monitoring,” she said.
“Currently, there is no predictive test for the life-threatening condition that affects eight million women worldwide, 1650 in New Zealand, and kills about 200,000 each year.”