Elevated First-Trimester Neutrophil Count Is Closely Associated with the Development of Maternal Gestational Diabetes Mellitus and Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes

Abstract

Chronic low-grade inflammation plays a central role in the pathophysiology of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). In order to investigate the ability of different <a></a><a>inflammatory blood cell parameters</a> in predicting the development of GDM and pregnancy outcomes, 258 women with GDM and 1154 women without were included in this retrospective study. First-trimester neutrophil count outperformed white blood cell (WBC) count, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in the predictability for GDM. Subjects were grouped based on tertiles of neutrophil count during their first-trimester pregnancy. The results showed that as the neutrophil count increased, there was a step-wise increase in GDM incidence, as well as glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level, Homeostasis Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR), macrosomia incidence and newborn weight. Neutrophil count was positively associated with pre-pregnancy Body Mass Index (BMI), HOMA-IR and newborn weight. Additionally, neutrophil count was an independent risk factor for the development of GDM, regardless of the history of GDM. Spline regression showed that there was a significant linear association between GDM incidence and continuous neutrophil count when it exceeded 5.0 × 10<sup>9</sup>/L. This work suggested that first-trimester neutrophil count is closely associated with the development of GDM and adverse pregnancy outcomes.