Journal of Blood & Lymph

Haematological Indices of Nigerian Pregnant Women

Abstract

Michael OA*, Theresa OA and Tyodoo MM

Haematological profile to a large extent, reflects the overall well-being or otherwise of an individual. Anaemia, thrombocytopaenia and leucocytosis are among the most common changes observed in the haematological parameters of pregnant women. Paucity of documented reference values for pregnant women from this region necessitated this study, considering the importance of these parameters, the potential implication of its wrong interpretation and application and their effects on pregnancy and its outcome. A total of 253 women, aged 15-50 years were recruited. Two hundred and eleven of them were pregnant and 42 were non pregnant control. Assessment of some key haematological parameters showed higher WBC and ANC and lower platelets, Hb and ALC in the pregnant compared to the non-pregnant women (p<0.05). It also showed higher WBC and ANC and lower platelets and haemoglobin concentration with increasing trimester (p<0.05).