Dengue Infection in Pregnancy.

While dengue infection is still on the increase in adults in Thailand, it also affects pregnant women, especially pregnant teenagers. This study was designed to investigate dengue infection during pregnancy. Seven cases of dengue infection in pregnant women were admitted to Ban Pong Hospital, Ratchaburi, Thailand, between 2008 and 2012. Dengue infection presented in all pregnancy trimesters. There were two severe cases: one was dengue hemorrhagic fever in the first trimester, and the second was at a critical stage of the infection during labor. There were three cases of abortion. These three cases included one complete, one incomplete, and one threatened abortion, with rising hematocrits of 22.8%, 17.1%, and 14.7%, respectively. Two out of the three teenage pregnancies experienced complete and threatened abortions, while the third abortion case was a threatened abortion pregnancy at the critical stage of infection during intrapartum. Leukopenia was identified in six out of seven women. Low baseline hematocrit and low maximum hematocrit were laboratory findings. Clinical management involved administration of intravenous fluids and antipyretics. Favorable outcomes can be obtained through early diagnosis and supportive treatment. The morbidity profile can be more serious in teenage pregnancies. Additional studies should be conducted to establish whether low baseline hematocrit, low percentages of rising hematocrit in pregnant women with dengue infection, and abortions (with a high degree of increasing hematocrit during the critical stage of the disease) are typical clinical signs.