Placental protein-13 (PP13) in combination with PAPP-A and free leptin index (fLI) in first trimester maternal serum screening for severe and early preeclampsia

Background: Placental protein-13 (PP13) is involved in placental invasion and has been suggested as a maternal serum marker of preeclampsia (PE) development. However, the discriminatory ability of PP13 in first trimester has not been completely clarified. Methods: PP13 was measured in first trimester (week 10(+3) -13(+6)) maternal serum from 120 PE pregnancies and 267 control pregnancies and was correlated with clinical parameters. The population screening performance of PP13 in combination with the PE markers pregnancy associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A) and free leptin index (fLI) was assessed by Monte Carlo simulation. Results: In severe PE (including HELLP) cases (n = 26) the median PP13 concentration was 35.8 pg/mL (range: 17.8-85.5 pg/mL) and in PE pregnancies (n = 10) with birth prior to week 34, the median PP13 concentration was 30.6 pg/mL (13.1-50.1 pg/mL), compared to controls with a median of 54.8 pg/mL (range: 15.4-142.6 pg/mL) (p < 0.04). The population screening detection rate (DR) for a falsepositive rate of 10% for severe PE and HELLP was 26% for PP13, 28% for PP13 + PAPP-A, 33% for PP13 + fLI, and 40% for PP13 + PAPP-A + fLI. Conclusions: PP13 is a marker of severe PE and HELLP syndrome. The screening performance of PP13 can be markedly improved by combining it with fLI and PAPP-A.