TURKU, Finland--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- PerkinElmer, Inc., a global leader focused on the health and safety of people and the environment, today announced the launch of its DELFIA® Xpress PlGF Assay (not available in the USA and Canada). The new assay is the first placental growth factor assay kit designed to help clinicians screen pregnant women for early-onset pre-eclampsia during their first trimester of pregnancy.
Early-onset pre-eclampsia is a pregnancy complication that causes hypertension and associated physical symptoms and organ damage to expectant mothers, with adverse effects to unborn and newborn babies. Early-onset pre-eclampsia may cause delivery before 34 weeks and has been historically difficult to predict. While there is no known cure for pre-eclampsia, identifying at-risk women early in their pregnancy can allow effective clinical intervention to increase the chances of a successful delivery and protect the health of both the mother and child.
Jim Corbett, president, Specialty Diagnostics, PerkinElmer, said, “Pre-eclampsia negatively impacts both the physical health of newborns and the emotional health of families. In addition, the costs associated with the care for a preterm baby are about three times that of a full term baby in the first year. We feel strongly that early identification of women at high risk is integral to managing this disease and improving pregnancy outcomes.”
Corbett added, “The DELFIA Xpress PlGF Assay is the result of our continual quest to find new ways for identifying high-risk pregnancies and provide tools that can reliably predict disease based on biomarkers or other key indicators. We’re proud to launch this product and, with it, a new standard in screening for pre-eclampsia so more women are identified early and more babies are born healthy.”
The DELFIA Xpress PlGF Assay is designed for use with PerkinElmer’s DELFIA® Xpress table-top clinical instrument, which is widely used for multiple prenatal screening tests.
The DELFIA Xpress PlGF assay quickly and accurately detects levels of PlGF – a protein produced by the placenta during pregnancy. Reduced maternal serum concentration of PlGF has been shown in a high proportion of pregnancies that have gone on to develop pre-eclampsia. PlGF testing with the DELFIA Xpress system enables clinicians to:
* Identify patients at high risk of developing pre-eclampsia by the end of the first trimester, potentially before other symptoms appear
* Perform increased surveillance of high-risk pregnancies for better management and safer outcomes for mother and child
* Increase intervention opportunities and reduce the risk of critical health problems associated with pre-eclampsia
* Perform multiple simultaneous prenatal health screening tests, including for Down’s Syndrome, on a single serum sample during a single patient visit
* Additionally, researchers investigating pharmacological interventions can explore earlier and more effective potential treatments for pre-eclampsia patients
Low dose aspirin is one of the treatments proposed for women identified to be at risk of pre-eclampsia. Recent work (Bujold et al. 2010*), while confirming the effectiveness of aspirin treatment, emphasizes the importance of initiating it in the first trimester of pregnancy, by 16 weeks at the latest. The DELFIA Xpress PlGF Assay, unlike second trimester tests, allows its users to obtain a risk assessment well in advance of this deadline.
*Bujold et al. (2010) Prevention of preeclampsia and intrauterine growth restriction with aspirin started in early pregnancy: a meta-analysis. Obstet Gynecol. 116:402-14
The DELFIA® Xpress PlGF assay kit is available for use in the European Union, and is not currently available for use in the USA and Canada. For more information on the kit, please visit: www.perkinelmer.com/pre-eclampsia
About PerkinElmer, Inc.
PerkinElmer, Inc. is a global leader focused on improving the health and safety of people and the environment. The company reported revenue of approximately $1.8 billion in 2009, has about 8,800 employees serving customers in more than 150 countries, and is a component of the S&P 500 Index. Additional information is available through 1-877-PKI-NYSE, or at www.perkinelmer.com.
