Association of serum inhibin a with pre-eclampsia: An observational cohort study with propensity score matching

Abstract

Objective: To assess whether serum inhibin A at 14-20 weeks of gestation is associated with the occurrence of pre-eclampsia.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study using propensity score matching was conducted on 11 682 singleton pregnant women with established deliveries at the Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University between January 2017 and July 2019. We investigated serum inhibin A levels at 14-20 weeks of gestation and calculated the relative risk between inhibin A and pre-eclampsia by multifactorial logistic regression analysis. Smoothed, fitted curves were used to observe the effect of inhibin A in relation to the occurrence of pre-eclampsia.

Results: The risk of pre-eclampsia occurrence increased with elevated serum inhibin A. After full adjustment for confounders, the risk ratio for pre-eclampsia in the group of pregnant women with high inhibin A was 2.92 (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.08-4.11) compared with those with normal inhibin A. The results of sensitivity analysis suggested a consistent effect of inhibin A on the risk of pre-eclampsia in different populations.

Conclusion: Elevated serum inhibin A at 14-20 weeks of gestation is associated with pre-eclampsia and may provide an early warning signal for pregnancy outcomes associated with pre-eclampsia.

Keywords: cohort study; inhibin A; pregnancy; pre‐eclampsia; propensity score matching; risk factor.