Ask The Doctor Monday

Monday, April 18, 2011

Ask The Doctor Monday

Today’s question comes from Jane:

Q: I just had an abortion and was offered an “Anti-D” injection because my blood group is A- (minus). Do I need this?

A: Aside from the main blood groups (A,B, AB or O), there is another component to your blood type. This is called the Rhesus (Rh) group. One can be Rh-positive or Rh-negative. This is why you’ll see blood types designated as “A+” or “B-”, etc. Your Rh status is determined by the Rh group of your parents. If one of your parents is Rh-positive, then you have a chance of being Rh-positive. People who are Rh-positive have a substance called D-antigen on the outside of their red blood cells, Rh-negative people don’t.

Your question addresses the concern we have when an Rh-negative mother has a baby who is Rh-positive. If at any time during the pregnancy there is mixing of maternal and fetal blood, the mother’s immune system may recognize the baby’s Rh-positive blood as foreign and produce ‘anti-D antibodies’ against it. These 'anti-D antibodies’ can then attack the baby’s red blood cells, which then can lead to problems with the pregnancy, including spontaneous abortion.

Therefore, in women who just underwent a spontaneous abortion and are known to be Rh-negative, an Anti-D injection [Rho(D) immune globulin or Rhogam] is recommended in the event that the fetus was Rh-positive. The Anti-D injection will essentially “clean up” the mother’s blood of any Rh-positive blood that may have come from the baby before mom’s immune system has a chance to produce antibodies which can stay around in her system can cause issues with future pregnancies. This will help prevent future spontaneous abortions which are caused by the differences between mom and baby’s Rhesus groups.

Read more about the Rhesus Group and Rhogam.

If you have a general medical question you'd like to suggest, please email it to: dailydose@righthealth.com

Editor's Note: The information contained in this article is for informational purposes only, itis not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

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