Diagnostic Power of Pregnancy-Associated Plasma Protein-A (PAPP-A) for Identifying Preeclampsia in Pregnant Women: A Case-Control Study

Background & Objective: Pregnancy-Associated Plasma Protein-A (PAPP-A) has emerged as a potential biomarker for assessing the risk of preeclampsia. This study was conducted with aim to assess the diagnostic power of Pregnancy-Associated Plasma Protein-A (PAPP-A) for identifying preeclampsia in pregnant women attending medical facilities in Zahedan, Iran.Materials & Methods: This case-control study was conducted on 30 pregnant women diagnosed with preeclampsia as the case group and 120 pregnant women without preeclampsia as the control group. Participants were selected from Edalat Clinic and Ali Ibn Abi Talib Hospital between 2020 and 2021. Data concerning PAPP-A levels were extracted from medical records. The diagnostic performance of PAPP-A was evaluated using the Area Under the ROC Curve (AUROC), along with sensitivity, specificity, and the Youden index.Results: The mean PAPP-A levels were significantly different between the groups, with case and control groups measuring 0.74±0.33 MoM and 1.14±0.71 MoM, respectively (P<0.001). The AUROC for PAPP-A in preeclampsia was found to be 0.72 (P<0.001). An optimal cutoff value of 0.69 MoM for PAPP-A demonstrated a sensitivity of 0.66, specificity of 0.80, and a Youden index of 0.46.Conclusion: This study revealed that PAPP-A has the potential as a serum marker for early detection of preeclampsia during the first trimester, helping to identify and manage this outcome.