Red Blood Cells During Pregnancy

2024 Author: Rachel Wainwright | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 07:39

Red blood cells during pregnancy

In blood tests in pregnant women, attention is paid to the number of erythrocytes only when there are signs of anemia. This happens because oxygen saturation depends on the number of red blood cells. Erythrocytes during pregnancy are of great importance, both for the expectant mother and for the child. Red blood cells contain hemoglobin. The growth of the fetus and the condition of the pregnant woman depend on its amount. Erythrocytes, under no circumstances, should leave the bloodstream, therefore, the detection of red blood cells in the urine indicates a pathology of pregnancy.

Erythrocytes in urine during pregnancy

When erythrocytes are found in the tests during pregnancy, it is urgent to find out the nature of hematuria (Greek "bleeding with urine"). The reason for the appearance of red blood cells in the urine during pregnancy can be a serious kidney disease or a tumor process. Such information is contained in reference books recommended for study by students of faculties of medical academies and medical schools. In practice, the reasons why red blood cells appear in the urine during pregnancy are much simpler and more prosaic.

Laboratory assistants distinguish between true and non-true hematuria. In the first case, the researchers directly indicate that the red blood cells have undergone "processing" in the renal tubules. If whole erythrocytes are present in the analysis, hematuria is considered untrue, because the blood mixed with urine during its excretion, but not formation.

Causes of untrue hematuria:

• Urolithiasis disease;
• Uterine bleeding;
• Cervical erosion;
• Colpitis of a pregnant woman.

With urolithiasis, kidney stones either move with the flow of urine, or, being in a fixed state, form pressure ulcers in the renal pelvis - trophic ulcers, from which blood cells, including erythrocytes, can be released. The movement of sand along the urinary canals is accompanied by injury and abrasions on the inner surface of the epithelium of the ureters, urethra. So red blood cells appear in the urine during pregnancy, which got into it not at all due to kidney disease, but due to traumatic lesions of the urinary system.

With uterine bleeding, erythrocytes are also found in the urine. It is not at all necessary that the urine be stained in the color of blood, 1-15 erythrocytes are enough per one field of view - a circle on a glass slide bounded by the contours of the microscope tube. It so happens that in a routine urine test, latent signs of a threatened abortion are revealed.

If a woman is diagnosed with cervical erosion, erythrocytes may also appear in the urine, during pregnancy the cervix softens, the vessels dilate and let the blood cells pass.

Colpitis - an inflammation of the vaginal mucosa - occurs in pregnant women with special features. The cells of the vagina are filled with glycogen, which is an excellent breeding ground for microbes. They penetrate into the intercellular spaces and damage the cell membranes. So, red blood cells appear in the smear and urine during pregnancy, which have nothing to do with kidney function.

An additional check of urine tests and a pelvic examination allow to find out the cause of untrue hematuria.

Additional studies and measures for the appearance of red blood cells in the urine during pregnancy:

• Examination of the cervix in the mirrors and colposcopy;
• Laboratory examination of a vaginal smear;
• Culture from the cervix and urethra for the presence of genital infections (Trichomonas);
• Ultrasound of the kidneys;
• Urine analysis according to Nechiporenko.

The most important measure is the elimination of errors in the delivery of urine. It should be collected in the morning, after a simple hygiene procedure (washing, but not douching!). Before collecting urine, cover the vagina with a gauze swab, then skip the first portion, and collect the rest in a container (jar). This will be the middle portion. If, for any reason, it is impossible to comply with the urine collection technology (there are no living conditions), a urinary catheter is used. If the results show the same picture, a urine test according to Nechiporenko should be collected. The collection technology for its delivery is no different. The same average portion of urine is taken, but it determines the number of red blood cells in a quantitative ratio. With a positive test according to Nechiporenko, erythrocytes during pregnancy exceed the upper limit of the norm. This indicates kidney damage and requires treatment in a hospital setting.

Elevated red blood cells during pregnancy

When it comes to blood tests, low red blood cell counts indicate anemia. In this situation, the tactics are clear, both to doctors and to a pregnant woman. Their number should be increased! For this purpose, drugs are prescribed that stimulate the production of red blood cells by the red bone marrow. The most affordable means for such purposes are food products, specifically: pomegranate juice. It should only be borne in mind that an increase in erythrocytes in the blood during pregnancy will occur no earlier than after long-term administration of the "medicine", since the life expectancy of an erythrocyte is 120 days.

Often, blood cells containing a small amount of hemoglobin turn pale and are difficult to identify. They can be mistaken for lymphocytes - they are also quite large cells, the nuclei of which are rarely visible when viewed through an ordinary microscope. A true decrease in red blood cells occurs in hypoplastic anemia - one of the types of leukemia, in which pregnancy, like conception, becomes problematic.

More often, the analyzes reveal increased erythrocytes, during pregnancy it is impossible to confuse them with other blood cells. A high number of red corpuscles per unit volume indicates not an improvement in health, but a thickening of the blood.

Increased red blood cells during pregnancy do not improve oxygen supply; on the contrary, they worsen it. Why is this happening?

Blood, thickened, stagnates and moves much more slowly. On the way from the lungs to the placenta, erythrocytes in the blood during pregnancy give up a huge amount of oxygen, while the child gets already oxidized products. This is the paradox of the situation - there are many erythrocytes, and the fetus suffers from a lack of oxygen.

Normal indicators of the number of erythrocytes during pregnancy are from 3.8 to 5.5 10 ¹² / l. Values above and below are considered pathological. The blood hematocrit index indicates the ratio of red blood cells to blood volume and is expressed as a percentage. If the hematocrit is more than 45%, the pregnant woman needs hospitalization for infusion therapy (droppers). The blood will thin out - the nutrition of the cells of the fetus and the woman will improve.

A normally proceeding pregnancy should not be accompanied by abnormal analyzes, which determine an increased number of red blood cells, especially their appearance in the urine.

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