During pregnancy it is normal to see changes in the amount of leukocytes, lymphocytes and platelets, as the woman's body is adapting to the baby as it develops. However, in some cases it is possible that changes in the number of leukocytes are a consequence of a urinary infection, which is also common in this period.
The leukogram is a part of the blood test that aims to check the amount of defense cells in the body circulating in the blood, the white blood cells, which correspond to the leukocytes and lymphocytes. It is important that the pregnant woman carry out the white blood cell so that she can know how her immune system is doing.
White blood cell values tend to return to normal a few days after delivery, however if this does not happen it is important that the change is correlated with the woman's medical history to check for the existence of an ongoing disease.
High leukocytes in pregnancy
High leukocytes, or leukocytosis, usually happen as a consequence of pregnancy, which can be pre-delivery stress or the body's response to the fetus, that is, the body starts to produce more defense cells to prevent rejection. Leukocytes are normally very high in pregnancy, reaching more than 25000 leukocytes per mm³ of blood, with a gradual normalization of this value after delivery.
Although leukocytosis is common during pregnancy, it may be recommended by the doctor to perform a urine test, even if the woman has no symptoms, to rule out the possibility of urinary tract infection. See how to identify urinary tract infection in pregnancy.
White blood cell reference values in pregnancy
The absolute reference values for total leukocytes in women from 14 years of age are between 4500 and 11000 / mm³, but during pregnancy these values are changed:
- 1st trimester: Leukocytes: reference value x 1.25; Rod neutrophils: reference value x 1.85; Segmented neutrophils: reference value x 1.15; Total lymphocytes: reference value x 0.85 2nd trimester: Leukocytes: reference value x 1.40; Rod neutrophils: reference value x 2.70; Segmented neutrophils: reference value x 1.80; Total lymphocytes: reference value x 0.80 3rd trimester: Leukocytes: reference value x 1.70; Rod neutrophils: reference value x 3.00; Segmented neutrophils: reference value x 1.85; Total lymphocytes: reference value x 0.75 Up to 3 days after labor: Leukocytes: reference value x 2.85; Rod neutrophils: reference value x 4.00; Segmented neutrophils: reference value x 2.85; Total lymphocytes: reference value x 0.70
The reference values vary according to the woman's age, so it should be checked before being multiplied by the values mentioned above. See what the white blood cell reference values are.
