Serum Uric Acid Level in Antenatal Women at 28 Weeks of Gestation as a Predictor of Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy

Introduction: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDPs) are significant contributors to avoidable fetomaternal morbidity and death.The primary factor leading to elevated maternal and perinatal morbidity and death linked to HDP is the absence of a specific and focused diagnostic test to identify pregnant women at risk of developing HDP.Serum uric acid has been widely explored as an HDP predictor.Many women present during the third trimester; therefore, this study investigated if blood uric acid levels at 28 weeks might predict HDP later.Methodology: The prospective observational study was conducted on 150 antenatal women with a gestational age of 28 weeks, in a peri-urban medical college of central India. Results:The baseline serum uric acid of 54 (36%) pregnant women was >6.3 mg/dL.Of these 54 women, 30 (55.6%) developed HDP, compared to 26% with serum uric acid within the range.Statistically significant differences in mean serum uric acid levels were found across normotensive, gestational hypertension (GH), and pre-eclampsia (PE) groups: 4.7, 5.9, and 7.0 mg/dL, respectively.High serum values were positively associated with preterm birth, cesarean delivery, low birth weight (LBW), and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission.A cut-off value of 5.45 mg/ dL had a 90.9% sensitivity and 77.7% specificity. Conclusion:The study found that 28-week blood uric levels predict subsequent hypertensive problems in pregnancy.A threshold value of 5.45 mg/dL at 28 weeks of gestation had 90.9% sensitivity, 73.68% specificity, and 66.67% positive predictive value (PPV).The negative predictive value (NPV) was 93.3%.Serum uric acid predicts pregnant hypertensive problems with 80% accuracy.High serum uric acid was linked to poor fetal outcomes.