Assessment of the role of hematological inflammatory markers in the severity of intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy

Abstract

Introduction. Hematological inflammatory markers may be promising diagnostic markers for assessing the severity of intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy. The aim of the study was to evaluate and compare the levels of hematological inflammatory markers in intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy. Material and methods. A prospective cohort study of 142 clinical cases, divided into two groups depending on the presence of cholestasis gravidarum, was carried out. The research was conducted by assessing the level of bile acids and hematological inflammatory markers in the mother’s blood, as well as by studying medical records. The IBM Statistics SPSS 21 program was used to process the statistical data. To compare categorical variables, the χ² without the Yates’ continuity correction test was applied. Results. There was an increase in platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio in pregnant women with intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy compared to the control group (146.0±6.8 versus 135.2±7.3, respectively). The values of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and the average volume of platelets were similar in both groups. At the same time, the study found a decrease in the values of erythrocyte distribution among women whose pregnancy was complicated by cholestasis gravidarum. Conclusions. The study showed a significant increase in platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio in women whose pregnancy was complicated by cholestasis gravidarum, as well as an increase in this indicator with increasing levels of bile acids. Thus, this ratio may be a promising diagnostic marker in assessing the severity of intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy.