The diagnostic and predictive values of N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptides in pregnancy complications and neonatal outcomes

Objective: To investigate the plasma N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) levels relative to pregnancy complications and clarify the role of NT-proBNP in predicting pregnancy outcomes. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on 208 singleton pregnant women from August 2015 to October 2018. They were categorized into the early-onset PE (n=52), late-onset PE (n=32), GH (n=21), GDM (n=49), and healthy control (n=54) groups. The NT-proBNP concentrations were measured for all groups, and the correlation between the NTproBNP levels and the pregnancy complications was analyzed. Results: The NT-proBNP levels were significantly higher in the early-onset and late-onset PE groups than in the other groups (P<0.05). The receiver operating characteristic curve showed that the plasma NT-proBNP levels had excellent diagnostic performance for early-onset and late-onset PE. The areas under the curve (AUCs) were 0.864 and 0.825 at the cut-off values of 142.3 pg/mL and 183.5 pg/mL for these two groups, respectively. The plasma NT-proBNP concentrations were positively correlated with the neonatal outcomes. The AUC was 0.788 when the cut-off value was 257.5 pg/mL. The high NT-proBNP level was associated with a low Apgar score and low birth weight. Conclusion: NT-proBNP is an effective indicator for assisting in the diagnosis of pregnancy complications and predicting newborn outcomes. NT-proBNP can be used to monitor early-onset and late-onset PE.