Abstract: Pre-eclampsia is closely associated with increased maternal and perinatal mortality and morbidity. Early recognition of women at risk of pre-eclampsia can effectively strengthen the management of the pregnancy. The tests used to predict pre-eclampsia include clinical history, examination findings, laboratory and haemodynamic tests. In general, tests in early pregnancy for predicting later development of pre-eclampsia have better specificity than sensitivity, as body mass index greater than 34 kg/m2, alpha-fetoprotein, fibronectin and uterine artery doppler (bilateral notching) all have specificities above 90%. Only uterine artery doppler resistance index and combinations of indices have a sensitivity of over 60%. Test such as kallikreinuria not used in clinical practice, has shown high sensitivity above 80%, without compromising specificity, and require further investigation. At present, the clinical practice of pre-eclampsia prediction is the joint application of several parameters, not a check project with sufficient accuracy can be used independently.

Key words: Pre-eclampsia, Body mass index, Blood pressure, alpha-fetoproteins, Fibronectins, Ultrasonography, Sensitivity and specificity