Objective: To summarize reported evidence on the performance and clinical usefulness of prediction tests for recurrent hypertensive disease in pregnancy.
Methods: A literature search was conducted in MEDLINE/PubMed and EMBASE. Test characteristics were extracted for relevant reports.
Results: Thirty-three of 4,311 articles found met the inclusion criteria. Twenty-four potential predictors were identified. Pre-pregnant plasma volume, uterine-artery blood flow velocity profiles, and combined longitudinal patterns of in-pregnancy laboratory variables had reasonable predictive capacity, but also some practical shortcomings. Confidence intervals were often wide.
Conclusions: Although evidence points to promising predictive accuracy of some tests, immediate applicability is hampered by statistical imprecision and clinical drawbacks.