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Nucleated red blood cells in infants of mothers with asthma

Yoav Littner1, Dror Mandel, Galit Sheffer-Mimouni

  • 1Department of Neonatology, Lis Maternity Hospital, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Israel.

American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology
|February 20, 2003
PubMed

Insights

Infants born to mothers with asthma show higher nucleated red blood cell and lymphocyte counts at birth. This finding suggests a potential link between maternal asthma and neonatal hematological markers.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal Hematology
  • Maternal-Fetal Medicine
  • Immunology

Background:

  • Maternal asthma can influence fetal development and neonatal health.
  • Understanding neonatal hematological parameters in infants of asthmatic mothers is crucial for early health assessments.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine if term, appropriate-for-gestational-age infants born to mothers with asthma exhibit elevated absolute nucleated red blood cell and lymphocyte counts.

Main Methods:

  • A comparative study of term, vaginally delivered, appropriate-for-gestational-age infants.
  • Group 1: Infants born to mothers with active asthma during pregnancy (n=28).
  • Group 2: Infants born to control mothers (n=29). Absolute nucleated red blood cell counts were analyzed within 12 hours of birth.

Main Results:

  • Infants of mothers with asthma had significantly higher absolute nucleated red blood cell and lymphocyte counts compared to controls.
  • Absolute nucleated red blood cell count correlated significantly with asthma severity.
  • No significant differences were observed in platelet counts between the groups.

Conclusions:

  • Term infants born to mothers with asthma present with elevated circulating absolute nucleated red blood cell and lymphocyte counts at birth.
  • These findings highlight a potential impact of maternal asthma on neonatal hematopoiesis and immune status.
Abstract

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