Meta-analysis of 8 studies: first-trimester PlGF is higher in women with gestational diabetes

A systematic review and meta-analysis published in BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth reports that women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have higher maternal serum placental growth factor (PlGF) in the first trimester than women without it. The work was done by Sharifipour, Siahkal, Mohaghegh and Shadab. It included eight observational studies with 36,003 participants in total biomedcentral.comBMC Pregnancy and Childbirthbiomedcentral.comOpen source ↗.

GDM is a common metabolic disorder of pregnancy, and early detection can help prevent associated complications. The authors set out to test whether serum PlGF is associated with the condition. The study analyses observational data, so it reports an association.

Search and data

The authors searched Scopus, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Google Scholar from inception up to 18 August 2026. The initial search returned 2,812 records. Screening was done in EndNote X8, and the pooled analysis in Review Manager 5.3 and STATA, with p < 0.05 taken as statistically significant.

Study quality was assessed with the Downs and Black checklist. The median total score was 19.5, which the authors rate as good overall quality of the included studies biomedcentral.comBMC Pregnancy and Childbirthbiomedcentral.comOpen source ↗.

Result and its limits

The difference in PlGF between women with GDM and controls was statistically significant: pooled mean difference 0.07 MoM (multiples of the median), 95% CI 0.02–0.11, p = 0.004. This analysis was based on four studies and showed no statistical heterogeneity (I² = 0%).

The authors conclude that women with GDM have significantly higher PlGF levels in the first trimester of pregnancy. At the same time, they state that the certainty of the evidence is low.

Further research is therefore needed to establish the clinical importance of this finding. Until then, according to the authors, PlGF measurement cannot be considered established for routine prediction of the condition biomedcentral.comBMC Pregnancy and Childbirthbiomedcentral.comOpen source ↗.