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Updated: Jun 26, 2026

Isolation of Primary Human Decidual Cells from the Fetal Membranes of Term Placentae
Published on: April 30, 2018
Human chorionic gonadotropin in cervicovaginal secretions as a predictor of preterm birth
Gayathri Rengaraj1, Kiran Guleria, Amita Suneja
1Departments of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University College of Medical Sciences and Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, New Delhi, India.
Objective:
To compare the qualitative (QL) and quantitative (QN) levels of betahCG in cervicovaginal secretions as predictors of preterm birth.
Methods:
The study included 100 women. QL and QN assays were done with velocit kit and ELISA, respectively.
Results:
A positive QL assay had sensitivity of 78%, specificity 95%, positive predictive value (PPV) 90%, negative predictive value (NPV) 88% and odds ratio (OR) = 70.87 (95% CI = 18.50, 271.50). The likelihood ratios (LRs) for positive and negative tests were 15.6 and 0.06, respectively. Using a cutoff value of 34.5 mIU/ml, the QN assay had sensitivity of 86%, specificity 86%, PPV 78% and NPV 92%, OR = 36.90 (95% CI = 10.79, 126.15). The LRs for positive and negative tests were 6.14 and 0.16, respectively.
Conclusion:
The simple and cheaper QL betahCG test is a better predictor of preterm birth as compared to the QN test.
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