Study of peripheral smear examination, platelet count, prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time in pregnancy induced hypertension

Objectives of the study: To study the peripheral smear, platelet count, PT, APTT in cases of pregnancy induced hypertension. To study the extent to which these changes are associated with the severity of preeclampsia and eclampsia. To study the frequency of these pregnancy induced hypertension cases that cause changes in the above haemotological findings. To study the severity of pregnancy induced hypertension on peripheral smear findings, platelet count, PT, APTT values. Material and Method: A total of 350 patients with pregnancy induced hypertension were taken for study from November 2012 to April 2014. Platelet count, prothrombin time(PT) & activated partial thromboplastin time(aPTT) were measured and peripheral smear examination was done. Results: Out of 350 cases of PIH, most common were patients with mild gestational hypertension(n=159) followed by severe preeclampsia(n=78),mild preeclampsia (n=67) and severe gestational hypertension(n=41) and 5 cases of HELLP syndrome. The main hematological abnormalities were anemia and prolonged prothrombin time. The other significant findings were of thrombocytopenia and prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time. The most common age incidence was 21 to 25 years. The most common peripheral smear finding was microcytic hypochromic anemia. Conclusion: Hypertension is a common medical complication of pregnancy which contributes significantly to the maternal and perinatal mortality and morbidity. Thus the knowledge of clinical signs and symptoms of PIH and abnormal hematological findings is essential for the effective management of these patients