Zilma Silveira Nogueira Reis

Ophthalmic Artery-Resistive Index and Evidence of Overperfusion-Related Encephalopathy in Severe Preeclampsia

Neurological findings in preeclampsia fulfill diagnostic criteria of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES), which is related to cerebral autoregulation impairment associated with high blood pressure. In preeclampsia, PRES may occur without a significant increase in blood pressure. Our aim was to investigate the association between ophthalmic artery resistive index (OARI) and clinical evidence of PRES, defined as the presence of headache and blurred vision, in patients with severe preeclampsia. OARI and main clinical and laboratory parameters were obtained in 112 patients with severe preeclampsia. Differences in these parameters were analyzed in the function of clinical evidence of PRES with a 2-sample t test. The area under receiver operating characteristic curve for each of these parameters in the function of clinical evidence of PRES was obtained. Logistic regression models were established with parameters categorized by cutoff points obtained in receiver operating characteristic curves. Among 112 patients with severe preeclampsia, 46 (41%) presented clinical evidence of PRES. These patients presented lower OARI (P<0.0001), higher mean blood pressure at admission (P<0.0001), higher mean blood pressure elevation after the first trimester (P<0.0001), and higher lactate dehydrogenase (P<0.0001) than those without clinical evidence of PRES. OARI presented an area under receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.810±0.039 (95% CI: 0.742 to 0.895; P<0.0001). OARI <0.56 was associated with clinical evidence of PRES, with an odds ratio of 12.67 (95% CI: 4.08 to 39.39; P<0.0001). Data suggest that OARI is a relevant biomarker of PRES in severe preeclampsia.

Antenatal Ultrasonographic Anteroposterior Renal Pelvis Diameter Measurement: Is It a Reliable Way of Defining Fetal Hydronephrosis?

Purpose. It was to quantify the intraobserver and interobserver variability of the sonographic measurements of renal pelvis and classify hydronephrosis severity. Methods. Two ultrasonographers evaluated 17 fetuses from 23 to 39 weeks of gestation. Renal pelvis APD were taken in 50 renal units. For intraobserver error, one of them performed three sequential measurements. The mean and standard deviation from the absolute and percentage differences between measurements were calculated. Bland-Altman plots were used to visually assess the relationship between the precision of repeated measurements. Hydronephrosis was classified as mild (5.0 to 9.9 mm), moderate (10.0 to 14.9 mm), or severe (≥15.0 mm). Interrater agreement were obtained using the Kappa index. Results. Absolute intraobserver variation in APD measurements was 5.2 ± 3.5%. Interobserver variation of ultrasonographers was 9.3 ± 9.7%. Neither intraobserver or interobserver error increased with increasing APD size. The overall percentage of agreement with the antenatal hydronephrosis diagnosis was 64%. Cohens Kappa to hydronephrosis severity was 0.51 (95% CI, 0.33 to 0.69). Conclusion. Inter and intraobserver APD measurement errors were low in these group, but the agreement to hydronephrosis diagnosis and classification was fair. We suggest that standard and serial APD measurement can better define and evaluate fetal hydronephrosis.

Presymptomatic prediction of preeclampsia with angiogenic factors, in high risk pregnant women

Introduction: The aim of this study was to investigate the value of placental growth factor (PLGF), soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) and sFlt-1/PLGF ratio, in predicting symptomatic preeclampsia (PE). Methods: A prospective longitudinal study was carried out on 71 high risk preeclamptic women cohort. All of them had normal blood pressure level (≤140/90 mmHg) at the time of enrolment, 26.8 ± 1.5 weeks. Maternal blood was collected and plasma was stored in a freezer at −80 °C. PE was defined according to the National High Blood Pressure Education Program Working Group Criteria. Accuracy of angiogenic factors in predicting PE was evaluated using Receiver-operating characteristics. Results: Maternal plasma concentrations of PLGF and sFlt-1 were able to predict PE (0.90, p < 001; 0.78, p = 0.003, area under the curve, respectively) but the sFlt-1/PLGF ratio presented the best prediction potential over the others (0.95, area under the curve, p < 0.001). Conclusion: All angiogenesis factors were effective biomarkers in predicting PE during the second trimester, before the clinical onset of PE.

Cardiofemoral index as an ultrasound marker of fetal anemia in isoimmunized pregnancy

To test a new noninvasive ultrasound method for diagnosing fetal anemia in red blood cell isoimmunized pregnancies.

Comparative Study of Endothelial Function and Uterine Artery Doppler Velocimetry between Pregnant Women with or without Preeclampsia Development.

Background. Poor placentation and systemic endothelial dysfunction have been identified as main events in Preeclampsia (PE). The relationship and chronology of these phenomena are important if we are to understand the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying this major clinical problem. Objectives. To compare the evolution of placentation and endothelial function in normotensive and preeclamptic pregnancies. Patients and methods. In a prospective cohort study, 59 pregnant women with a high risk of developing PE were subjected to flow-mediated dilation (FMD) and to Doppler velocimetry of uterine arteries in order to obtain their Pulsatility Index (UtA-PI). The variations in the FMD and UtA-PI values, between 16+0 and 19+6 and 24+0 and 27+6 weeks of gestation, were compared, taking PE development into consideration. Results. Nine patients developed PE and the other 50 women remained normotensive. At 16+0 to 19+6 weeks of pregnancy, patients that developed PE presented higher values of UtA-PI than the normotensive group, but there was no difference in FMD results between them. At 24+0 to 27+6 weeks, the patients that developed PE presented higher values of UtA-PI and lower values of FMD than the women that remained normotensive. Conclusions. These results corroborate the evidence that endothelial injury is secondary to poor placentation.

Análise de indicadores da saúde materno-infantil: paralelos entre Portugal e Brasil

PURPOSE To analyze comparatively the conditions of birth in Portugal and Brazil from 1975 to 2007. METHODS Indicators of maternal and child health: rates of maternal death and neonatal mortality, cesarean rate and public spending on health were retrospectively collected from electronic databases of health information from the Unified Health System (DATASUS) and the National Institute of Statistics of Portugal (INE), among others. Their values were descriptively analyzed in terms of trends and the temporal sanitary scenarios were presented and discussed, comparing, when possible, the information from the two countries. RESULTS Births in Portugal were characterized by lower maternal mortality (12.2 x 76.2/100.000) and neonatal mortality (2.2 x 14.6/1000), compared to Brazil, considering the average of the years from 2004 to 2007. The history of the conquest of maternal and child indicators of excellence in Portugal involved a phase that paralleled the significant socio-economic improvements and the increasing contribution of public health, followed by another from the 1990 s, involving better equipped health care units. In Brazil, rates of maternal and neonatal mortality are declining, but satisfactory values have not yet been achieved. The historical difference in the amount of social spending on health, both in current and historical values, was a crucial difference between countries. Despite the disparities in maternal and neonatal outcomes, cesarean section rates were equally ascendant (34.5% in Portugal and 45.5% in Brazil), considering the average for the period from 2004 to 2007. CONCLUSION The indicators of maternal and neonatal death in Portugal and Brazil have aligned themselves to social, economic and contributions of public investments in health. The increasing rates of caesarean section do not explain the discrepancies in maternal and neonatal outcome between countries.

Associação entre risco gestacional e tipo de parto com as repercussões maternas e neonatais

PURPOSE To analyze the relationships among gestational risk, type of delivery and immediate maternal and neonatal repercussions. METHODS A retrospective cohort study based on secondary data was conducted in a university maternity hospital. A total of 1606 births were analyzed over a 9-month period. Epidemiological, clinical, obstetric and neonatal characteristics were compared according to the route of delivery and the gestational risk characterized on the basis of the eligibility criteria for high clinical risk. The occurrence of maternal and neonatal complications during hospitalization was analyzed according to gestational risk and cesarean section delivery using univariate and multivariate logistic analysis. RESULTS The overall rate of cesarean sections was 38.3%. High gestational risk was present in 50.2% of births, mainly represented by hypertensive disorders and fetal malformations. The total incidence of cesarean section, planned cesarean section or emergency cesarean section was more frequent in pregnant women at gestational high risk (p<0.001). Cesarean section alone did not influence maternal outcome, but was associated with poor neonatal outcome (OR 3.4; 95%CI 2.7-4.4). Gestational high risk was associated with poor maternal and neonatal outcome (OR 3.8; 95%CI 1.3-8.7 and OR 17.5; 95%CI 11.6-26.3, respectively). In multivariate analysis, the ratios were maintained, although the effect of gestational risk has determined a reduction in the OR of the type of delivery alone from 3.4 (95%CI 2.7-4.4) to 1.99 (95%CI 1.5-2.6) for adverse neonatal outcome. CONCLUSION Gestational risk was the main factor associated with poor maternal and neonatal outcome. Cesarean delivery was not directly associated with poor maternal outcome but increased the chances of unfavorable neonatal outcomes.

Prediction of lethal pulmonary hypoplasia among high-risk fetuses via 2D and 3D ultrasonography

To compare accuracy between 3D and 2D ultrasonography for predicting lethal pulmonary hypoplasia (LPH) among high‐risk fetuses.

Identification of a Novel Agonist-Like Autoantibody in Preeclamptic Patients

BACKGROUND Recent studies have shown that preeclampsia (PE) is associated with the presence of autoantibodies (AABs) that activate the angiotensin II AT1 receptor, which could contribute to many of the symptoms of PE. METHODS To investigate the frequency and the targets of AABs in preeclamptic women (31 cases) and healthy pregnant normotensive women (29 cases) in Brazil, antibodies from serum samples were detected by a bioassay using spontaneously beating neonatal rat cardiomyocytes in culture. In the cardiomyocytes, the agonistic AABs induce a positive or negative chronotropic response, mimicking the corresponding receptor agonists. The specificity of the AAB response was identified by specific receptor antagonists. RESULTS Thirty preeclamptic patients (97%) presented AABs against the angiotensin II AT1 receptor. The agonistic effect of the AAB was blocked by irbesartan and neutralized by a peptide corresponding to the second extracellular loop of this receptor. Strikingly, we discovered that all sera from the severe preeclamptic patients (16 cases) contained a novel agonist-like AAB directed against the endothelin-1 ETA receptor in addition to the AABs against the angiotensin II AT1 receptor. This AAB was selectively blocked by the antagonist BQ-123, antagonized by the protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor Calphostin C and neutralized by peptides corresponding to the second extracellular loop of the endothelin-1 ETA receptor subtype. CONCLUSIONS We described, for the first time, the presence of endothelin-1 ETA receptor AABs in PE. Our results suggest that the presence of both agonistic AABs may be involved in the pathogenesis of severe PE.

Epidemiologic profile, survival, and maternal prognosis factors among women at an obstetric intensive care unit

To identify the epidemiologic profile, maternal survival, and prognosis factors that might affect survival rates in the obstetric intensive care unit (ICU).