Aplastic anemia associated with pregnancy: maternal and fetal complications

Abstract

Objective: To analyze obstetric complications associated with aplastic anemia (AA) among pregnant women and analyze the underlying factors.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of 60 pregnancies with AA. Thirty four of these patients were grouped as complicated group having obstetric complications and the rest 26 without complications as the control group. Comparative analysis was conducted to access the related risk factors, which may affect the maternal and fetal complications.

Results: The major maternal complications in this study were premature labor, gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia, acute heart failure, postpartum hemorrhage, and severe postpartum infection. Premature birth, fetal growth restriction and stillbirths accounted for 27.3%, 5.0% and 6.7% of prenatal mortality. Twenty six of patients had uncomplicated pregnancies. Patients without complications had higher mean hemoglobin concentration (75.38 ± 16.19 g/L) and platelet counts (23.92 ± 14.82 × 10⁹ cells/L) than did women with complications (mean hemoglobin concentration, 61.47 ± 15.15 g/L, p = 0.001; mean platelet counts, 12.11 ± 7.87 × 10⁹ cells/L, p < 0.001).

Conclusion: Pregnancies associated with AA can carry the risk of multiple maternal and fetal complications. Low hemoglobin concentration and platelet counts may be the primary risk factors for obstetric complications in pregnancies associated with AA.

• Aplastic anemia
• maternal and fetal complications
• risk factor

Declaration of interest

This report is an independent research. The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors. This study received approval from Peking University People’s Hospital Medical Ethics Committee (ref. no. 2013-03). No external funding was obtained for this article.