Impact of Gestational Age and Ethnic Origin on the Full Blood Countof Pregnant Women in Sagamu

Abstract

Pregnancy is a period in which the woman's physiology undergoes rapid changes
as the baby develops into maturity and grows in size. Among the changes
experienced is the haemodynamics in the pregnant mother since blood circulates
and influences the development of the foetus. In this study, we investigated the
blood haematological parameters of pregnant women in different stages of
pregnancy progression from the first to the third trimester. Study participants
included one hundred pregnant subjects that fulfilled both the inclusion and
exclusion criteria for the study while forty non-pregnant women were enlisted as
control. Blood sample (5 mL) was withdrawn from each participant with minimal
stasis and dispensed into tubes containing Ethylene-diamine-tetra-acetic acid
(EDTA) as the anticoagulant. Blood samples were then analyzed with a Coulter
Analyzer. The data were presented as Mean ± SD, and statistical analysis was
carried out using the student’s paired t-test and ANOVA as appropriate. The
result showed a significant (p≤0.05) decrease in the mean values recorded for the
packed cell volume (PCV) as it decreased from 34.60±2.61 % in the first trimester
to 30.83±3.27 % at the third trimester. A similar significant reduction in values
were recorded for haemoglobin, MCV and MCH. There was a significant
increment in the values recorded for mean MCHC across the trimesters. Our
study has confirmed that pregnancy influences the decrease of many of the
maternal red blood cell parameters negatively as the foetus advances in age. As a
result, we suggest continuous supplementation of pregnant women with
haematinics, especially as the pregnancy approaches term.