A new marker in preterm labor: RDW and MPV

Aim: To evaluate whether serum platelets Mean Platelet Volum (MPV), and Red Cell Distribution width (RDW) are useful as predictors of preterm labour (PL) in patients with preterm labour (PL), and to compare the clinical efficacy of various serum inflammatory markers to predict the risk of preterm delivery (PD). Materials, and methods: The main group consisted of pregnant women who were earlier than the 37th gestational week. The control group has consisted of pregnant bigger than 37th weeks of gestation. The patients with PL who participated in the study group were divided into early preterm labour (EPL), and late preterm labour (LPL) groups. The two groups were investigated in terms of clinical aspects of RDW, and MPV and serum markers studied at admission. ROC curve analysis was used to determine the optimal MPV, RDW cut-off levels predicting PL. Results: Neutrophil (NEU), MPW, RDW, and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) were significantly higher in LPL than in women who gave birth at term (p=0.006, OR=1.411; p<0.001, OR=1.410; 0.002, OR=1.612, p=0.035, OR=1.294). In multivariate regression analysis, MPV positive was the strongest predictor variable. Besides, there was a significant correlation between MPV and RDW elevation, and neonatal intensive care needs (NICU) in women who delivered between 34 weeks, and 37 weeks. Conclusion: High RDW and MPV are independent predictors of preterm delivery in patients with LPL. In our study, we found that the increase of RDW and MPV was higher in women with high PL risk more than in healthy individuals. MPV has the highest area for prediction of preterm birth, and RDW>14,5, and MPV>9,6 have the highest sensitivity and specificity. RDW may be more significant than measuring any of the individual markers in the simultaneous use of preterm delivery. The simultaneous use of RDW and MPV with existing markers to increase our identifying abilities of preterm labour may be stronger than that of any of the individual markers.