A prospective evaluation of placental lactogen as a test for neonatal risk

This study evaluates the usefulness of maternal serum concentrations of human placental lactogen in the management of high-risk pregnancies. The study was performed in a community hospital over a year's time and involved 250 gestations. The test detected only 11.4% of the pregnancies defined as high-risk by clinical criteria and none of the pregnancies in which the newborn was compromised. Serum human placental lactogen is an insensitive test in predicting the outcome of pregnancies in an obstetric population unless historical information regarding maternal disease is unavailable.