Influence of Anemia Status and ABO Blood Group on Hematological Parameters Among Pregnant Women

Abstract

Pregnancy is a typical physiological condition that involves widespread changes throughout the body and in the blood system. Nevertheless, variations in certain blood-related measurements during this time can impact the mother's health and increase the risk of pregnancy-related complications.  The study aims to examine the connection between hematological parameters in pregnant women and the condition of anemia, as well as to explore how these parameters relate to different blood group types. This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Gynecology Department of Tobruk Medical Centre, Tobruk, Libya. All pregnant women who were more than 28 weeks pregnant and at least 18 years old were included in this study. A total of 2141 pregnant women were enrolled. Clinical data for these women were collected using hospital electronic records. Blood samples were tested for complete blood count using the Sysmex Automated Hematology Analyzer, and blood group determination using indirect and reverse grouping tubes. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software, with independent samples t-tests comparing various hematological parameters and a p-value used to determine statistical significance. The Fisher–Freeman–Halton was used to analyze the association between two categorical variables, and the Phi coefficient was used to calculate to evaluate the strength of associations. Hemoglobin and hematocrit levels were significantly lower in the anemic group, showing a large difference in hemoglobin (d = 0.82) and a moderate effect for hematocrit (d = 0.43). Platelet counts were higher in 3.9% of anemic women compared to 1.2% of non-anemic women. Although this association was statistically significant (χ² = 18.965, p = 0.0001), the Phi coefficient (φ = 0.094) indicates that the relationship is weak. Similarly, there was a statistically significant but weak association between white blood cell (WBC) distribution and anemia (χ² = 5.041, p = 0.046; φ = 0.080) with 14.9% of anemic women having elevated WBCs versus 11.9% of non-anemic women. No association was found between ABO blood groups and red blood cell (RBC) or platelet counts, although a weak but statistically significant association was observed with WBC levels (χ² = 33.476, p = 0.006; φ = 0.125). The study found that pregnant women with blood group B were more likely to exhibit elevated white blood cell counts, followed by those with blood group O+ and AB+. This paper's findings help improve our understanding of how anemia status and ABO blood group traits affect important blood-related measurements such as white blood cell count, red blood cell count, and platelet count. The results highlight the need for more research in bigger and more varied groups of people to better understand the biological and genetic reasons behind these connections.