Approximately one in five pregnant women visiting an antenatal care clinic in northwest Ethiopia experienced thrombocytopenia, according to hospital-based research. The condition, characterized by a low platelet count during gestation, poses clinical risks such as excessive bleeding during or after childbirth, wound leakage at cesarean delivery sites, and neonatal thrombocytopenia.
The cross-sectional study examined patients who visited the Antenatal Care Clinic at Debre Tabor Comprehensive Specialized Hospital between January 1 and April 30, 2024. Researchers analyzed data using Stata version 14.0, applying descriptive statistics alongside bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses to identify variables linked to the blood disorder. A P-value of 0.05 or lower was set as the threshold for statistical significance.
Comparing Prevalence Across Ethiopian Medical Centers
The overall prevalence of thrombocytopenia among pregnant women in the Debre Tabor study reached 20.14%, with a 95 confidence interval ranging from 16.6 to 24.3 percent. The data showed that the condition predominantly manifested in mild forms among the patient population.
By contrast, a separate institutional-based cross-sectional study conducted at Dessie Comprehensive and Specialized Hospital reported a lower prevalence of 9.9 percent, with a 95 confidence interval between 6.5 and 13.6 percent, as detailed in research hosted on pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Investigators at Dessie utilized a systematic random sampling technique to enroll 294 pregnant women between February and March 2021, collecting four milliliters of venous blood from each participant to determine complete blood counts using a DIRUI BF 6500 automated hematology analyzer.
Within the Dessie cohort, mild thrombocytopenia accounted for 72.4 percent of cases, while moderate and severe forms represented 17.2 percent and 10.4 percent, respectively.
Independent Predictors and Trimester Variations
Multivariable logistic regression analysis from the Debre Tabor study identified several independent predictors significantly associated with higher odds of the condition. Older maternal age yielded an adjusted odds ratio of 6.5, while an increase in gestational age showed an odds ratio of 5.2. Additionally, lower antenatal care follow-up correlated with an increased likelihood of the disorder, alongside a lack of iron supplementation and a documented history of heavy bleeding.
The Dessie hospital study identified distinct predictors through its multivariate analysis. Urban residency showed an adjusted odds ratio of 0.206, indicating a lower likelihood among city residents in that specific cohort. Furthermore, gestational ages within the first trimester and second trimester demonstrated significant associations, with adjusted odds ratios of 0.183 and 0.264 respectively, reflecting how platelet counts shift across different stages of pregnancy.
Mandating Routine Screenings and Nutritional Support
Both research teams emphasized the necessity of routine platelet count determinations during antenatal care visits to ensure proper diagnosis and mitigate hemorrhage risks. The Debre Tabor findings point toward targeted interventions focused on optimizing nutritional care and improving compliance with scheduled antenatal appointments to address modifiable risk factors like iron deficiency and missed clinical visits.
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