Spectrum of Pancytopenia in Local Population

Objective: To determine the frequency of pancytopenia aetiologies in local population. Study Design: Cross sectional study Place and Duration of Study: Haematology Department, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Rawalpindi Pakistan, from Jun 2020 to Jul 2021. Methodology: A total of 263 patients having pancytopenia were inducted in study from 30 June 2020 to 1 July 2021. All patients having pancytopenia were included in the study and all patients receiving chemotherapy/cytotoxic drug therapy were excluded. Blood complete picture (Blood CP), reticulocyte count, peripheral blood smear, bone marrow aspirate smear and trephine biopsies were done according to standard protocols. Results: Out of 263 patients diagnosed with pancytopenia, megaloblastic anemia was commonest and present in 25.85% (68 cases) followed by leukemia in 25.09% (66 cases), aplastic anaemia in 14.44% (38 cases), mixed deficiency anaemia 9.50% (25 cases), non-haemopoietic infiltrate/metastasis 7.60% (20 cases), infectious/inflammatory/sepsis 4.56% (12 cases), myelodysplastic syndrome 3.42% (9 cases), lymphoma 3.04% (8 cases), hypersplenism 1.90% (5 cases), granulomatous inflammation 1.52% (4 cases), visceral leishmaniasis 1.14% (3 cases), storage disorders 1.14% (3 cases), histiocytic lymphohistiocytosis 0.80% (2 cases) respectively. Conclusion: Megaloblastic anaemia is the commonest pancytopenia cause followed by leukemias, aplastic anaemia, mixed deficiency anaemia, non-haemopoietic infiltrate (metastasis), infections/inflammations/septicaemias, lymphomas, visceral leishmaniasis, myelodysplastic syndrome, hypersplenism, granulomatous inflammation, storage disorders and histiocytic lymphohistiocytosis.