title: Brachial Artery Flow Mediated Dilation in the First Trimester to Predict the Occurrence of Hypertensive Disorders during Pregnancy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine whether brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD) assessed by ultrasonography during the late first trimester is able to predict the occurrence of hypertensive disorders during pregnancy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Maternal endothelial function was assessed by flow-mediated dilation (FMD) of the brachial artery in 487 pregnant women at 11-13(+6) weeks' gestation. Subjects were prospectively followed and grouped according to the outcomes related to hypertensive disorders. We determined the areas under receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve with their respective 95% confidence intervals (CI) for using low FMD results to predict the occurrence of hypertensive disorders during pregnancy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 487 women, 9 (1.8%) were diagnosed with early-onset preeclampsia, 22 (4.5%) were diagnosed with late-onset preeclampsia, 47 (9.7%) developed gestational hypertension, and the remaining 409 (84%) pregnancies were unaffected by hypertensive disorders. Area under ROC curve analyses demonstrated that FMD was not able to predict pregnancies that developed hypertensive disorders.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We conclude that FMD should not be considered a potential first-trimester marker of hypertensive disorders during pregnancy.
authors: Department of Public Health, Universidade Estadual do Ceará (UECE), Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil (CE).
authors: Júlio A G
authors: JA
authors: Alves
authors: Andre H
authors: AH
authors: Miyague
authors: Paulo C P
authors: PC
authors: de Sousa
authors: Sammya B
authors: SB
authors: Maia
authors: Fabricio da Silva
authors: Fda S
authors: Costa
authors: Wellington P
authors: WP
authors: Martins
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001916:Brachial Artery / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D046110:Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011261:Pregnancy Trimester, First; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult