Clinical Trial

Preeclampsia and Pregnancy Hypertension: Mechanisms and Biomarkers for Early Detection

Preeclampsia (PreE), the most dangerous hypertensive disorder in pregnancy, affects 5-8% of all U.S. pregnancies and is a leading cause of worldwide pregnancy deaths with nearly 600,000 associated annual deaths. Georgia has one of the highest pregnancy death rates in the US, with 48.6 pregnancy related deaths per 100,000 births between 2018-2020, a significant increasing trend increasing since 2008. In Georgia,, Black and AA (B/AA) mothers are 3.3 times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications compared to non-Hispanic white mothers. There is a significant need for improved risk prediction and early detection, which would facilitate early diagnosis, targeted surveillance and timely delivery. Limited small studies of gestational blood pressure (BP) variation suggest that greater BP variability (BPV) is associated with negative maternal and perinatal outcomes, but the evidence is currently inconclusive. Few studies investigated the role of gut or oral microbiome and gut-derived metabolites in preeclampsia and gestational high blood pressure. None of those two types of markers (clinical and biomarkers) have been studied in a Gerogia population, particularly AA populations. In the pilot project, we propose to test the following specific aims in high risk GA pregnant women.

• Circulatory System
• Female Reproductive System
• Blood Pressure Variability
• Gestational Hypertension
• Preeclampsia
• Short Chain Fatty Acids