Breakthrough study backs Mirvie blood test to predict preeclampsia months before symptoms
Study included 9,000 pregnancies across multiple centers
Results from a breakthrough study published today in Nature Communications reveal new advances in the biological understanding of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP), including preeclampsia - a leading cause of maternal morbidity and mortality as well as preterm birth.
Researchers used data from more than 9,000 representative pregnancies within the multi-center Mirvie-sponsored Miracle of Life prospective study to discover and validate RNA signatures capable of distinguishing between severe and mild hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, including preeclampsia, months before symptoms occur.
The paper also validates the predictive performance of Mirvie’s simple blood test to predict preeclampsia early, at 17.5 to 22 weeks gestational age, in pregnancies without any pre-existing high-risk conditions.
“By the time a patient is symptomatic, it’s a race against the clock to try to get the baby to term and not risk the mother’s health,” said Dr. Kara Rood, a maternal-fetal medicine physician and one of the study’s principal investigators.
“Current guidelines are not helping us identify which patients are truly at high risk and we need better tools. Mirvie’s preeclampsia risk prediction test can now improve risk assessment, helping women and their care teams be informed and take actions with the potential to delay onset or prevent the disease.”
Changing a reactive care model
Preeclampsia, which is characterised by high blood pressure and signs of organ damage, typically arises late in pregnancy and can escalate rapidly. It remains a leading cause of maternal mortality and preterm birth globally.
Current screening relies largely on maternal history and general risk factors such as age and weight - an approach researchers say misses too many cases. Rates of preeclampsia have nearly doubled in the last decade and now affect 1 in 12 pregnancies.
“Over the last 100 years, we have relied on a reactive care model in pregnancy,” said Dr. Thomas McElrath, vice president of clinical development at Mirvie and a maternal-fetal medicine physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
“This study represents a profound opportunity to move toward a proactive care model. Importantly, these results demonstrate for the first time the unique molecular signatures that distinguish between severe and mild hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, giving us confidence in a much more precise and personalized approach for at-risk pregnancies.”
Today, the adherence to known valuable interventions for pregnancies at high risk of preeclampsia such as daily aspirin is less than 50%, even among high-risk patients. With a simple blood test available early in the second trimester, pregnant patients and care teams can intervene months before symptoms and more confidently implement an evidence-based prevention care plan to improve the chance for a full-term pregnancy and healthy delivery.
The novel findings add to the growing body of research demonstrating the use of the Mirvie RNA platform to predict pregnancy complications months in advance, including studies on preeclampsia risk prediction in Nature and preterm birth risk prediction in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology and research presented in January at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine conference on prediction of fetal growth restriction.
With rising rates of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy and a health system struggling to adapt, the new findings offer a glimpse into what personalised, proactive pregnancy care could look like.
“We are thrilled with the results from our investments in this critical research and collaboration with more than a dozen internationally renowned experts in maternal-fetal medicine,” said Maneesh Jain, co-founder and CEO of Mirvie.
“Much like the discovery of molecular subtypes of breast cancer led to improved outcomes, the discovery of molecular subtypes in HDP offers a bright future for personalizing pregnancy care and addressing the rising rates of births with complications.”
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