New non-invasive test could be used early in pregnancy to predict preterm birth and fetal growth retardation.

Growth retardation, accelerated weight gain, cardiovascular anomalies, and other childhood health problems are associated with fetal growth retardation and preterm birth..

Preterm birth is defined as delivery before the 37th week of pregnancy.. Fetal growth retardation is defined as a newborn weighing at least 10% less than predicted.

Preterm births are becoming more common. Over the past 10 years in the developed countries of the world, their frequency has increased by 19.4%. The United States accounted for 42% of all preterm births in the developed world in 2010.

A recent report showed that Greece has experienced a particularly rapid rise in preterm birth rates over the past 20 years.. The new study, which included a cohort of mothers and children from Crete, aimed to find biomarkers that predict preterm birth and fetal growth retardation..

This study was the largest human study examining urine metabolomics for predicting preterm birth.. Scientists wondered if abnormalities in lipid accumulation and certain metabolic pathways in the first trimester of pregnancy could predict fetal growth retardation later on..

To find out, the team analyzed metabolites in the urine of 438 pregnant women, finding that elevated levels of the amino acid lysine are associated with spontaneous preterm birth.. They also found that elevated levels of N-acetylated glycoprotein are associated with cases where doctors have to induce preterm labor..

Metabolic biomarkers have also been found for fetal growth retardation. Decreased levels of acetate, formate, tyrosine, and trimethylamine are associated with growth retardation. Moreover, women with low levels of these four molecules in their urine have a greater risk of diabetes, as well as a higher concentration of insulin in the blood..

Hector Keun, researcher at their Department of Surgery and Cancer at Imperial College London, said: " But we were surprised to see an association between metabolite levels and low birth weight at such an early stage in pregnancy.. Our results will help identify women at risk for preterm and low birth weight babies with one simple test.

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Ken says that after such promising results, further work in this direction should be carried out, which may give scientists clues to predict other undesirable outcomes..

Ken's team is going to replicate their study in several countries to better understand the identified factors.. As for Greece, where the rate of preterm births is rising rapidly, Ken says it's clearly not about genetics, but rather about the environment..

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