News release

From: Springer Nature

Medicine: Blood filtering may provide treatment for preeclampsia

A blood‑filtering treatment can safely lower levels of a protein and reduce high blood pressure linked to very early and serious preeclampsia, according to a pilot study published in Nature Medicine. The results are from animal models and a small number of human participants. Although larger studies are needed, the findings suggest that this treatment could help to slow the progression of preeclampsia during pregnancy and reduce the risk of preterm delivery.

Preeclampsia is a condition in pregnancy that causes high blood pressure and can lead to serious problems for both mother and baby. However, there is currently no treatment for the disorder other than delivering the baby. As preeclampsia progresses, levels of a placental protein called sFlt‑1 increase and is thought to play an important role in the development of the condition.

Ravi Thadhani and colleagues tested a circulatory system-filtering technique called apheresis to remove sFlt‑1 from the blood. In tests in pregnant baboons, each treatment reduced sFlt‑1 levels by about half, and two of the three animals delivered healthy babies — the third died from birth complications unrelated to the treatment. The authors then tested the technique with five non-pregnant individuals and observed no adverse effects before treating pregnant women with very early preeclampsia. Seven women received one cycle of apheresis, and nine received several cycles of the treatment. In women who received more than one cycle, levels of sFlt‑1 fell by 16.7%, and blood pressure dropped slightly. Mothers and babies remained stable throughout. Pregnancy continued for a median of 10 days after hospital admission in participants who were treated, compared with 4 days for untreated women, and side effects linked to the treatment were mild.

The findings of this pilot study suggest that apheresis is safe and tolerable, and removing sFlt-1 from the blood may help to slow the progression of very early preeclampsia without harming the mother or the baby. However, the authors note the small sample size and emphasise that larger, controlled studies are needed to assess whether this approach can reliably extend pregnancy and improve clinical outcomes.