Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To study the effect of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy on peripheral venous blood cell count in preterm infants with a gestational age of 28-34 weeks. METHODS: A total of 227 preterm infants with a gestational age of 28-34 weeks who were admitted to the Department of Pediatrics, the First Hospital Affiliated to Kunming Medical University, from January to December 2020, and whose mothers had hypertensive disorders of pregnancy were enrolled as the study group. A total of 227 preterm infants with a gestational age of 28-34 weeks who were admitted during the same period and whose mothers did not have hypertensive disorders of pregnancy were enrolled as the control group. According to maternal blood pressure during pregnancy, the study group was divided into three subgroups: gestational hypertension (n=75), mild preeclampsia (n=81), and severe preeclampsia (n=71). According to the birth weight of the preterm infants, the study group was divided into two subgroups: small for gestational age (SGA) (n=113) and appropriate for gestational age (AGA) (n=114). Peripheral blood cell count on day 1 after birth was compared between the study and control groups, as well as between the subgroups of the study group. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, the study group had significantly lower white blood cell count, absolute neutrophil count, and blood platelet count (P<0.05) and significantly higher incidence rates of leucopenia and neutropenia (P<0.05). The subgroup analysis showed that the mild preeclampsia and severe preeclampsia subgroups had significantly lower white blood cell count, absolute neutrophil count, and blood platelet count than the gestational hypertension subgroup (P<0.05), and that the SGA subgroup had significantly lower white blood cell count, absolute neutrophil count, and blood platelet count than the AGA subgroup (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy can affect the peripheral venous blood cell count of preterm infants, which is more significant in infants with maternal preeclampsia and SGA infants.