IOSR Journal of Dental and Medical Sciences (IOSR-JDMS) e-ISSN: 2279-0853, p-ISSN: 2279-0861.Volume 17, Issue 5 Ver. 14(May. 2018), PP 18-24 www.iosrjournals.org DOI: 10.9790/0853-1705141824 www.iosrjournals.org 18 | Page Haemorheologic And Biochemical Parameters Of Pre-Eclamptic Patients In University Of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar, Nigeria Stella B. Egbe 1 , Euphoria C. Akwiwu 2 *, Patience A. Akpan 2 , Josephine O. Akpotuzor 2 1. Haematology Department, University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar. 2. Haematology Unit, Department of Medical Laboratory Science, University of Calabar, P.O. Box 1115, Calabar, Cross-River State, Nigeria. Corresponding auther: Stella B. Egbe Abstract: Pre-eclampsia refers to pregnancy-induced hypertension, a condition characterized by diffuse maternal endothelial dysfunction and a systemic inflammatory response with possible haemorheological changes. This study assessed haemorheologic and biochemical parameters of thirty pre-eclamptic patients admitted in University of Calabar Teaching Hospital and compared same with those of thirty normal pregnant as well as thirty apparently healthy non-pregnant controls aged 18-45 years. Weight, height and blood pressure of subjects were measured using standard instruments while body mass index was calculated. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate, relative plasma viscosity and fibrinogen concentration were used to assess haemorheology while biochemical parameters included protein in urine, total protein, albumin, globulin and uric acid concentrations. All tests were performed using standard techniques. The systolic and diastolic blood pressures, body mass index, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, relative plasma viscosity, fibrinogen concentration, total protein, albumin, globulin and uric acid levels of the pre-eclamptic patients were significantly higher (p<0.05) than values obtained for normal pregnant and non-pregnant controls. Blood pressure correlated positively (r=0.071; r=0.362) with uric acid concentration and a directly proportional relationship was expressed between levels of protein in urine and uric acid concentration of pre-eclamptic patients. Fibrinogen concentration was significantly higher (p<0.05) in the third versus second trimesters for normal pregnant subjects. Gestational age had no significant effect on the measured parameters among pre-eclamptic patients. Altogether, significant changes in haemorheologic and biochemical parameters existed in pre-eclamptic condition with increased risk of developing thrombosis and other complications of hypercoagulation. Key words: Pre-eclampsia, haemorheology, hypercoagulation --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Date of Submission: 09-05-2018 Date of acceptance: 26-05-2018 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I. Introduction Pre-eclampsia refers to pregnancy-induced hypertension characterized by large amounts of protein in urine. It is diagnosed when the systolic blood pressure is greater than or equal to 140mmHg and the diastolic blood pressure is greater than or equal to 90mmHg observed in two separate readings taken at least six hours apart. The other defining feature is the presence of up to 300mg of protein in a 24-hour urine sample (proteinuria) 1,2,3 . High blood pressure in pregnancy accounts for 10% of ill-health induced by pregnancy which affects nearly twenty million women worldwide each year 4 . The incidence of pre-eclampsia has been reported to be seven times higher in developing countries with a prevalence of 1.2% recorded in University of Calabar Teaching Hospital 5,6,7 . Pre-eclampsia mostly occurs in pregnant teens and in women over forty years and first- time pregnancies and is often characterized by excess salt and water retention in the kidneys, development of edema and hypertension in the mother and weight gain. In addition, there is vascular endothelium impairment with occurrence of arterial spasm in the brain, kidneys and liver 8,9 . This medical condition and its advanced stage (eclampsia) can result in rare but serious complications including stroke, presence of water in the lungs, heart failure, bleeding from the liver, reversible blindness and postpartum haemorrhage. Another associated complication is that of sudden detachment of placenta from the uterus (placental abruptio) which could result in stillbirth 10 . Pre-eclampsia is characterized by diffuse maternal endothelial dysfunction and a systemic inflammatory response which may significantly influence haemorheological variables. Haemorheology studies the flow properties of cellular and plasma components of blood, and these relate to the packed cell volume (PCV), plasma viscosity (PV), red cell aggregation and deformability. Moreover, plasma viscosity is largely