Evaluation of Serum Level of Thrombin-antithrombin III in Preterm Labors

Abstract

Background: Preterm labors still have a high rate of morbidity and mortality. This study was designed to evaluate the serum level of Thrombin-Antithrombin III (TAT-III) as a test in predicting preterm labor. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted from 2009 to 2010 at the two university hospitals of Shaheed Beheshty, and Al-Zahra, affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran. 128 pregnant women with a gestational age between 14 to 16 weeks were enrolled in the study and followed until delivery. The mean of TAT-III was compared between preterm labors and term labors. The optimal cut off and sensitivity, specificity, Positive Predictive Value (PPV) and Negative Predictive Value (NPV) were determined. Findings: The mean of maternal age was 24.7 ± 5.04 years (15-37 years), and the mean of gestational age was 31.5 ± 3.21 weeks (25-36 weeks). The mean of TAT-III serum level was significantly different between preterm labors and term labors (9.7 ± 3.6 vs. 7.3 ± 0.87 ng/mL, P = 0.000). The optimal cut off point was 8.3850 ng/mL, sensitivity was 70.3%, specificity 81.2%, PPV 78.9%, and NPV 73.2%. Conclusion: This study indicated that lamellar body counting test has a high PPV with good sensitivity, specificity, and NPV. Future studies with control in biases are warranted.

Keywords

• Thrombin-antithrombin III
• Preterm labor
• Pregnancy
• Sensitivity