THYROID HORMONES AND SOME HAEMATOLOGICAL INDICES AT DIFFERENT TRIMESTERS OF PREGNANCY IN YENAGOA NIGERIA

Ofor I. B.*, Onitsha E. N. and Tommy E. O.

ABSTRACT

There are profound physiological changes in the pregnant woman that have been insinuated to have significant effects on maternal thyroid function and haematological indices. These changes are capable of complicating the interpretation of maternal thyroid function tests (TFTs) results as well as the haematological indices. This study evaluates the thyroid function and some haematological indices at different trimesters of pregnancy carried out at Federal Medical Centre Yenagoa. A total of 120 subjects within the age range of twenty and thirty-five years were recruited for this study. Ninety (90) subjects were pregnant women (30 each in 1st, 2nd and 3rd trimester) and thirty (30) were non-pregnant women which serve as control. 7ml of blood sample was collected from each subject; 5ml was dispensed into a plain bottle allowed to clot, centrifuged and serum stored at -20oc for hormonal analysis; 2ml of whole blood was dispensed into tri-potassium EDTA (K3EDTA) bottle for haematological analysis using Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) and SYSMEX pocH-100i automated analyzer. The result showed a statistically significant (p<0.05) low Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) from the first trimester (1.05 ± 1.34 uIU/ml) and a significantly higher TSH at the third trimester (1.42±6.01 uIU/ml) when compared with the control (5.00 ± 0.22uIU/ml). There was a negative correlation (r= -0.812) with low haemoglobin concentration. The thyroid hormones T4 and T3 showed a statistically significant (p<0.05) elevation in the first trimester (1.21±4.11nmol/L and 2.81±2.44nmol/L) and second trimester (1.29±6.21nmol/L and 3.42±6.00nmol/L) respectively. Haemoglobin (Hb) (10.23±0.76g/dl) and Packed Cell Volume (PCV) (33.23±4.00%) levels decreased significantly (p<0.05) during the first trimester when compared with the control (12.99±0.69g/dl and 36±5.00%) respectively. Platelets (244±34x109/L) levels increased significantly (p<0.05) in the first trimester and decreased significantly in the second and third trimesters (233±44x109/L and 217±29x109/L) respectively when compared with the control (214 ±41x109/L). In conclusion, pregnancy alters the concentration of thyroid hormones and some haematological parameters in women.

Keywords: Heamatological indices; Pregnancy; Thyroid hormone.