Abstract
Objective: To evaluate complete blood count (CBC) changes that suggest coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) among asymptomatic pregnant women attending routine antenatal care Methods: A cross-sectional study included 187 healthy pregnant women who were attending the antenatal care clinic of a tertiary University hospital between March and June 2020. After a thorough history and examinations, a venous blood sample was taken from each participant for complete and differential blood counts. Those who showed CBC findings suggestive of COVID-19 were further scheduled for a nasopharyngeal swab for detection of SARS-CoV-2 specific antigens through polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results: We found 5.3% (n=10) of the study population showed CBC changes that are suggestive of COVID-19. When they were scheduled for nasopharyngeal swab for a PCR confirmatory test, 30% (n=3) of them were PCR positive (which represented 1.6% of the entire study population). The most frequently encountered COVID-19-suggestive change in peripheral blood leukocyte differential counts was leucopenia (100%), followed by decreased eosinophil count (50%), then neutropenia and lymphocytopenia (30%). Conclusions: Certain differential leucocyte count changes (leucopenia, neutropenia, lymphocytopenia and decreased eosinophil count) among asymptomatic pregnant women might be related to COVID-19 infection and may indicate a need for further testing.
Highlights
Coronaviruses are a family of pathogens that can potentially infect both humans and animals
Certain differential leucocyte count changes among asymptomatic pregnant women might be related to COVID-19 infection and may indicate a need for further testing
The pathogen was identified as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and the disease was identified as coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19)
Summary
Coronaviruses are a family of pathogens that can potentially infect both humans and animals. They produce several clinical entities such as the common cold, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).[1] The first known human-infecting coronaviruses were called 229E and OC43. The pathogen was identified as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and the disease was identified as coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). In March 2020, with the rapid worldwide spread across numerous countries, the COVID-19 outbreak was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO).[3]
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