West Afr J Med. 2022 Dec 29;39(12):1273-1279.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The study compared some haematological parameters in normotensive pregnant women with those of women with pre-eclampsia (PE) to identify those parameters that may reinforce the occurrence and severity of PE.
METHODS: The study was a case-control study involving 40 pre-eclamptic women as subjects and 40 normotensive pregnant women as controls. The subjects were classified into mild and severe based on their blood pressure of >140/90 mmHg and >169/100 mmHg, respectively. Full blood count (FBC) was done using a haematology autoanalyzer, D-dimer and fibrinogen were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method, while Prothrombin Time (PT) and activated plasma thromboplastin time (aPTT) were done manually.
RESULTS: The mean PCV was higher while the mean WBC was lower in PE but the differences were not statistically significant. The ESR was significantly higher (50.48 ± 2.90mm/hr vs 41.05 ± 3.74mm/hr, p < 0.049). The mean neutrophil (59.38 ± 7.77% vs 64.95 ± 6.68%; p < 0.001) and lymphocyte (31.35±7.67% vs 7.63±7.47%, p = 0.031) counts were significantly lower and higher, respectively, in PE. Although the mean platelet count in PE was lower, the plateletcrit, mean platelet volume (MPV), and platelet distribution width (PDW) were significantly higher in PE (p = 0.01, 0.04, 0.001, respectively). The D-dimer was significantly higher in the women with PE (p < 0.001), while the PT, aPTT and fibrinogen concentrations were not statistically different between the two groups.
CONCLUSION: It may be concluded that low platelet count, high MPV, PDW, PCT and ESR in PE women may reinforce the diagnosis while a high MPV may, in addition, discriminate between severe and mild Pre-eclampsia.
PMID:36583338
