A Mass Spectrometric Multicenter Study Supports Classification of Preeclampsia as Heterogeneous Disorder

Objective. The diagnostic value of affinity-based matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry analysis to distinguish preeclampsia (PE) from matched controls was tested in a multicenter setting. Methods. Serum samples of preeclamptic (n = 60) and healthy pregnant women (n = 66) from four centers were prospectively analyzed with predefined rule sets. Results. Overall sample classification reached sensitivity of 0.88 and specificity of 0.73. Separate calculations for early-onset PEs only (before 34 weeks of gestation) revealed sensitivity of 0.88 and specificity of 0.89. Conclusion. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry serum-profiling with center-wise standardization offers a fast and robust method to classify PE and contributes to the theory of PE being a heterogeneous disorder that ought to be subclassified.