Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 3, 2026
Design and Implementation of an fMRI Study Examining Thought Suppression in Young Women with, and At-risk, for Depression
Published on: May 19, 2015
B-type natriuretic peptide reference interval of newborns from healthy and pre-eclamptic women: a prospective,
David Rodriguez1, Gerardo Garcia-Rivas1, Estibalitz Laresgoiti-Servitje1
1Tecnologico de Monterrey, Escuela de Medicina y Ciencias de la Salud.
Objective:
To define and compare the reference interval of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) in healthy newborns (HN) from healthy mothers and with severe pre-eclampsia.
Design:
Prospective, multicentre, cross-sectional study.
Setting:
Four obstetric wards of second-level academic hospitals.
Participants:
167 HN, from 146 healthy and 21 severe pre-eclamptic women. We included newborns from healthy mothers with full-term pregnancies (38 to 42 gestational weeks), who received adequate prenatal care and who had Apgar scores ≥7 at 0 and 5 min. Newborns with chromosomopathies identified during prenatal consultations, those with respiratory distress and those with cardiac or pulmonary disease detected in the first paediatric evaluation were excluded from this study. In the group of pre-eclamptic women, we considered the same inclusion criteria, but the patients also had to meet the diagnostic criteria for pre-eclampsia with severity features, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists guidelines. The same exclusion criteria used for the healthy group were applied to the pre-eclampsia-associated newborn.
Interventions:
A single blood sample from the umbilical cord artery after delivery (vaginal or caesarean section).
Primary Outcome:
Reference level of BNP in HN.
Results:
In the HN group, the median BNP was 12.15 pg/mL (IQR 7.7-16.8 pg/mL) and in the pre-eclamptic group 20.8 pg/mL (IQR 5.8-46.5 pg/mL). The reference interval for BNP in HN was 5pg/mL (95% CI 5 to 5) to 34 pg/mL (95% CI 28.4 to 38.8). We identified higher expression of BNP in newborns from pre-eclamptic women overall (p=0.037, r=0.16) and in newborns exposed to stress conditions, such as complications during labour and delivery (p=0.004, r=0.33).
Conclusions:
In HN, BNP concentrations at birth were lower than reported in other similar populations. In neonates with stress conditions, the higher expression of this biomarker establishes another possible link between stress and the cardiovascular response.
Trial Registration Number:
NCT02574806; Pre-results.
Related Concept Videos
01:50Cross-Sectional Research
01:19Blood Studies for Cardiovascular System II: CRP, Hcy, and Cardiac Natriuretic Peptide Markers
These markers indicate stress or strain on the heart muscle:
Natriuretic Peptides (BNP)
Cardiac myocytes produce these hormones in response to ventricular stretching...
01:24Finding Volume Using Cross-Sectional Area
01:26Profile Leveling and Cross Sections
01:16Spinal Cord: Cross-sectional Anatomy
Gray Matter and its Components
Central to the gray matter is...
01:03Prediction Intervals
However, the point estimate is most likely not the exact value of the population parameter, but close to it. After calculating point estimates, we construct interval estimates, called confidence intervals or prediction intervals. This prediction interval comprises a range of values unlike the point estimate and is a better predictor of the observed sample value, y.