Abstract

This study aimed at instituting the standard values of CD4 and CD8 total counts among apparently healthy pregnant women in Wukari, Nigeria. Sixty (60) apparently healthy pregnant women age group of 18 – 40 years and thirty (30) non- pregnant women (control) age 18-40 were used as participants in the study. The pregnant individuals were divided into three groups, based on the trimester of pregnancy. CD4 and CD8 total counts were determined using flow cytometer. Automated blood analyzer was used to determine the leucocyte counts. The white blood cells (WBC) mean total count (x103/μl) of the pregnant women was 7.67±1.74 against 4.88 ± 0.64 of the control participants. The mean CD4 counts of pregnant women against the control individuals were 589.64 ±212.86 and 888.60 ± 296.66 cells/μl, respectively. This showed a significant decrease (P < 0.05) in the CD4 count of pregnant women compared to control individuals. The mean CD8 counts of pregnant women and control individuals were 387.18±122.33 and 316.66 ± 116.10 cells/μl, respectively. There was no significant difference (P > 0.05). The mean CD4 counts of pregnant women for the first trimester, second trimester and third trimester were 579.66 ± 269.33, 570.54 ±234.16 and 698.33 ± 254.74 cells/μl, respectively. This showed a significant difference from control individuals. For CD8 count, the results presented in mean ± standard deviation showed a non-significant difference (P> 0.05) in the three trimesters when compared with non-pregnant women.Comparisonshowed significance variations in the mean CD4 counts between the test and control but no significant difference in the total WBC and CD8 counts of both groups (P>0.05). In conclusion, the study showed that pregnancy significantly increased the WBC count but decreased CD4+ cell total count when compared tocontrol individuals while the mean CD8+ cell total count did not show any difference in the studied.