The Early Hematological Profile and Its Variations: A Useful Tool in the Prediction of Intraventricular Hemorrhage in Extremely Preterm Infants.

Background and Objectives : The purpose of this study to investigate if the early variations in the hematological profile could be a useful tool in the prediction and evaluation of intraventricular hemorrhage. Materials and Methods : It is a retrospective study conducted between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2022, in a tertiary academic center. In-born infants ≤ 28 weeks of gestation ( n = 134) were enrolled. The study group of infants with all grades of IVH was further divided into mild IVH subgroups (grades 1 and 2) and severe IVH subgroups (grades 3 and 4); the control group included infants without IVH. Results : The prevalence of IVH was 35.8% ( n = 48 of 134 infants-study group). We identified significantly lower median values of HGB ( p = 0.0312) and HCT ( p = 0.0172) in all grades of the IVH group at birth as compared with control, followed by a significantly higher drop in MCV ( p = 0.0146) and MCH ( p = 0.0002) in the fourth day of life. Conclusions : Extremely preterm infants with IVH may have lower HTC and HGB values at birth, together with a decrease in MCH and MCHC and increase in MPV. The predictive model based on logistic regression analysis could predict the probability of the occurrence of IVH according to their values.