Haematological and haemostatic changes in adults on substance abuse in Lagos metropolis Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Indiscriminate use of substance abuse is gradually becoming a major problem in Nigeria. There are concerns that this may impact some deleterious effects on their overall wellbeing. This study thus aim to evaluate haematological and haemostatic changes in adults on drug abuse in Lagos Nigeria.

Methods: A total of 250 participants comprising 150 users of substance abuse and 100 apparently healthy non-users of substance abuse participated in this study. The latter served as control group for this study. Whole blood was taken into EDTA and was used for full blood count and platelet count determination using Beckman coulter-5 part auto analyzer, erythrocytes sedimentation rate using Westergren method. Sodium citrate sample was evaluated for coagulation parameters.

Results: The mean red blood cell (RBC), haematocrit, and white blood cell values were higher (p <0.001) among substance abuse users when compare with the control. On the other hand, mean cell haemoglobin (MCH) and mean cell haemoglobin concentration (MCHC) values were lower (p <0.001) among substance abuse users as compared with the control while mean cell volume (MCV) was significantly higher (p <0.001) among substance abuse user. The mean erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) among substance abuse users was significantly higher (p <0.001) than the control group. Protein C, D-Dimer, prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin test (APTT) were higher (p <0.001) among substance abuse users whereas fibrinogen was lower (p<0.001).

Conclusion: Substance abuse seems to impact deleterious effects on haematological and haemostatic parameters among Nigeria population on substance abuse.

Keywords:: Substance abuse, haematological parameters, haemostatic parameters, D-dimer, Protein C, Red cell indices.