Blood
FDA approves groundbreaking blood test for early preeclampsia detection in pregnant women
Aug
New blood test for preeclampsia
The FDA has approved a new blood test that can detect whether a mother will get preeclampsia within 30 minutes. A dangerous complication characterized by high blood pressure. The test could save lives in a state where women are twice as likely to die from pregnancy related causes.
Dr. Padmashree “Champa” Chaudhury Woodham, the President of the Georgia OBGYN Society and Professor of Maternal-fetal medicine at Augusta University- Medical College of Georgia, said, “Unfortunately, one of the leading causes is hypertensive disorders in pregnancy, among which is pre-eclampsia.”
She expressed her excitement about the FDA’s approval of the B·R·A·H·M·S sFlt-1/ PlGF KRYPTOR Test System, developed by Thermo Fisher Scientific. As a high-risk O.B. doctor, she frequently deals with patients who have pre-eclampsia, and this new test could be a game changer.
Dr. Woodham advises pregnant women to watch out for certain symptoms of preeclampsia. She said, “If they are able to check their blood pressure and they have elevated blood pressure, which is defined as anything over 140 for the systolic blood pressure or 90 for the diastolic, they should be concerned. Additionally, symptoms like a persistent headache, pain on the right upper side of their belly or in the middle upper part of their belly, or visual changes like blurry vision are all potential signs of pre-eclampsia.”
