Physiological Changes and Trimester-Specific Reference Intervals for Complete Blood Count Parameters in Korean Pregnant Women

Background and Objectives: Pregnancy induces numerous physiological changes, including hematologic adaptations, which affect complete blood count (CBC) parameters. Existing reference intervals for CBC are often based on non-pregnant populations, potentially limiting their clinical utility during pre...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) Vol. 61; no. 9; p. 1665
Main Authors: So, Heejin, Kwon, Kyungsuk, Jung, Sukhyun, Kim, Kyeongmi
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 14.09.2025
Subjects:
Adult
Anemia
Blood cell count
Blood Cell Count - methods
Blood Cell Count - standards
Blood Cell Count - statistics & numerical data
Blood platelets
Blood tests
complete blood cell
Female
Gestational Age
Hematology
Hemoglobin
Humans
Laboratories
Nonparametric statistics
Physiological aspects
Physiology
Postpartum period
Pregnancy
Pregnancy Trimesters - blood
Pregnancy Trimesters - physiology
Pregnant women
reference interval
Reference Values
Republic of Korea
Retrospective Studies
trimester
Womens health
Republic of Korea
Vietnam
South Korea
China
United States > US
complete blood cell
pregnant women
trimester
reference interval
ISSN:1648-9144, 1010-660X, 1648-9144
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Background and Objectives: Pregnancy induces numerous physiological changes, including hematologic adaptations, which affect complete blood count (CBC) parameters. Existing reference intervals for CBC are often based on non-pregnant populations, potentially limiting their clinical utility during pregnancy. This study aimed to evaluate longitudinal changes in CBC parameters throughout pregnancy in Korean women and to establish gestational age-specific reference intervals. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study, conducted between March and May 2025, included CBC tests consecutively performed on the same individuals at five time points: the first trimester (≤12 weeks), second trimester (13–28 weeks), third trimester (29–40 weeks), delivery day, and the second postpartum day. Additionally, to prevent duplication with the primary cohort, CBC data from pregnant outpatients and non-pregnant controls were also analyzed to establish reference intervals. CBC parameters were measured using an automated hematology analyzer. Reference intervals were established using the 2.5th and 97.5th percentile of the distribution. Results: During pregnancy, white blood cell (WBC) counts increased most significantly during the second trimester, while hemoglobin (Hgb) levels declined most markedly at this stage. Platelet (PLT) counts showed a consistent and progressive decline. The reference intervals for CBC parameters—WBC (×109/L), Hgb (g/dL), and PLT (×109/L)—were 5.11–12.14, 11.3–14.3, and 184–374 in the first trimester; 6.11–13.45, 10.1–13.3, and 164–356 in the second trimester; and 5.62–12.42, 10.1–14.1, and 145–349 in the third trimester, respectively. Conclusions: This study examined longitudinal changes in CBC parameters in Korean pregnant women and provided gestational age-specific reference intervals for CBC. This is expected to help clinicians interpret CBC results in pregnant women.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 14
content type line 23
ISSN:1648-9144
1010-660X
1648-9144
DOI:10.3390/medicina61091665