Abstract:Objective To explore the clinical value of serum galectin-1 (Gal-1) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in assessing placental abruption (PA) in patients with severe preeclampsia (PE), and to analyze the associated risk factors.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on 231 patients with severe PE admitted to Northwest Women and Children's Hospital between January 2023 and January 2025. Based on the presence or absence of PA, patients were divided into the abruption group (n = 46) and the non-abruption group (n = 185). General clinical data and serum biomarker levels were collected and compared between the two groups. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify risk factors for PA in severe PE patients. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to analyze the predictive value of each indicator for PA.Results The abruption group showed significantly higher levels of indirect bilirubin, creatinine, and blood urea nitrogen compared to the non-abruption group (P < 0.05), while the fibrinogen level was significantly lower in the abruption group (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the abruption group had significantly lower levels of Gal-1, IL-12, PLGF, Fibulin-5, and Ang-2 (P < 0.05), but a significantly higher level of VEGF (P < 0.05). ROC curve analysis demonstrated that the combined biomarkers for predicting PA in severe PE patients yielded a sensitivity of 97.8% (95% CI: 0.885, 0.999), a specificity of 99.1% (95% CI: 0.969, 0.999), and an area under the curve of 0.977 (95% CI: 0.942, 1.000). Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that a high VEGF level was an independent risk factor for PA in severe PE patients [O^R = 3.025 (95% CI: 1.216, 7.527), P < 0.05]. Conversely, high levels of Gal-1 [O^R = 0.781 (95% CI: 0.679, 0.899) ], IL-12 [O^R = 0.824 (95% CI: 0.704, 0.963) ], PLGF [O^R = 0.953 (95% CI: 0.912, 0.996) ], Fibulin-5 [O^R = 0.816 (95% CI: 0.742, 0.897) ], and Ang-2 [O^R = 0.570 (95% CI: 0.343, 0.948) ] were identified as independent protective factors (P < 0.05).Conclusion In patients with severe PE complicated by PA, serum levels of Gal-1, IL-12, PLGF, Fibulin-5, and Ang-2 are significantly decreased, while VEGF levels are elevated. The combined detection of Gal-1, VEGF, and other related biomarkers significantly enhances the predictive efficacy for PA. Elevated VEGF levels represent an independent risk factor, whereas higher levels of Gal-1, IL-12, and other related biomarkers act as protective factors.