A Chichester hospital is testing a home 'spit' kit that will help pregnant mums spot if they are at risk of pre-eclampsia. One thousand women will trial the test that reads saliva for tell-tale markers of impending kidney problems linked with the condition.
Pre-eclampsia is often symptomless but up to one in 10 pregnant women can contract it, with one in 50 suffering severe problems, killing up to 1,000 UK babies every year.
Pre-eclampsia, caused by a defect in the placenta, which supplies nutrients and oxygen to the foetus, happens towards the end of pregnancy and causes high blood pressure and kidney problems, there is no cure, apart from delivery of the baby and removal of the placenta.
Prompt detection and intervention can save lives so with the test kits expected to be more reliable than blood pressure and urine checks says a report in Chemistry & Industry magazine, so it is hoped that the deaths can be reduced.
The ultimate aim is to develop a colour-coded "traffic light" detection kit for expectant mothers to use at home with a red reading would indicating high levels of urate in the saliva which may mean pre-eclampsia.
The woman should then have further checks with her hospital or GP to see if she is at risk.
The developers see the test as complimentary rather than replacing existing pre-eclampsia checks, the current tests involving blood pressure and urine are not always reliable. Not all pregnant women with high blood pressure will have pre-eclampsia, or additionally a positive urine test might be caused by an infection rather than pre-eclampsia. .
Action on Pre-eclampsia say: "This could be a potentially great complementary test and they look forward to seeing the results of the trial.