Transfusion for sickle cell disease in pregnancy: a single-centre survey

Sickle cell disease in pregnancy carries a high risk of maternal and fetal adverse outcomes. The use of prophylactic transfusions to reduce the risk of sickle complications is controversial. Current UK standards do not recommend the routine use of transfusion for sickle pregnancy. We examined transfusion episodes during sickle pregnancies in a single centre over an 11-year period.

We conducted a retrospective observational study of all pregnancies in patients with sickle cell disease who attended the joint obstetric/haematology clinic over an 11-year period. All pregnancies were managed according to a local protocol, which did not recommend routine transfusion.

A total of 38 pregnancies (HbSS 22, HbSC 13, Hb S/beta thalassaemia 3) were included, with a mean age at booking of 29 years. A total of 61% of pregnancies required on-demand or emergency transfusion during the course of pregnancy or post-partum. Women requiring a transfusion during pregnancy had a higher mean number of hospital admissions in the previous year (1·11 vs 0·15, P = 0·057), a significantly lower mean steady-state haemoglobin (85·0 vs 99·6 g L^-1 , P = 0·003) and a significantly lower mean haemoglobin at the pregnancy booking visit. (86·1 vs 99·5 g L^-1 , P = 0·02).

In sickle pregnancies assigned to standard management in a single centre, a high proportion of women required on-demand transfusion. Possible pre-pregnancy factors predictive of a need for transfusion include lower baseline haemoglobin and number of hospital admissions in the previous 12 months.