The utility of complete blood parameter indices to predict stillbirths

Abstract

Objective

In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between unexplained stillbirth (SB) cases and the complete blood parameter indices and we compared them with uncomplicated healthy cases.

Methods

Patients diagnosed with unexplained SB cases in a tertiary center between 2019-2022 were included in this retrospective case-control study. The gestational age threshold for SBs was accepted as births after the 20th week of pregnancy. Consecutive patients with no adverse obstetric outcomes were accepted as the control group. Patients’ complete blood parameter results at the time of the first admission to the hospital until 14 weeks were labeled as “1’’ and at the time of delivery were labeled as “2’’ and recorded. As inflammatory parameters, neutrophile-lymphocyte ratio, derivated neutrophile-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-lymphocyte ratio, lymphocyte-monocyte ratio (LMR), and hemoglobin-lymphocyte ratio (HLR) were calculated from complete blood results and recorded.

Results

There were statistically significant differences between the groups’ LMR1 (p = .040). Additionally, whereas HLR1 of the study group was 0.693 (0.38–2.72), it was 0.645 (0.15–1.82) in the control group (p = .026). However, the HLR2 of the study group was significantly lower than the control group (p = .021).

Conclusion

Necessary precautions such as fetal biophysical profile examination can be taken more frequently in the antenatal follow-up in patients considered to be at high risk of SB by using HLR. It is a novel marker that can be easily accessible and calculated from the complete blood parameters.

Keywords:

• Stillbirth
• pregnancy
• inflammation
• complete blood parameter indices

Authors’ contributions

Concept- D.T.E, B.L.K, A.T.; Design- D.T.E., A.T.; Supervision- Ö.K., D.Ş; Resource- D.T.E, B.L.K.; Data collection/Processing- D.T.E., B.L.K., S.S.; Analysis/Interpretation- D.T.E., A.T., S.S.; Literature search- D.T.E., Ö.K.; Writing- D.T.E., S.S., A.T., D.Ş; Critical Reviews- Ö.K., A.T., D.Ş. All authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Compliance with ethical standards

All procedures performed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional committee.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. The authors declare no financial disclosure. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. This manuscript is not under consideration for publication anywhere else.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.