Rh Incompatibility A Blood Disorder That Affects Mom And Baby
Rh incompatibility is a blood disorder that occurs during pregnancy. It happens because a mom has Rh-negative blood and her unborn baby has Rh-positive blood. Rh factor is a protein on red blood cells and if you have Rh-positive blood you have this Rh factor, and if you are Rh-negative blood you do not have the Rh factor.
The Rh factor is inherited or passed down from biological parents to their children genetically. The majority of individuals are born Rh-positive. Whether you have Rh factor or not, does not affect your health in any way unless you are a pregnant woman who happens to be Rh-negative blood pregnant with a fetus who is Rh-positive blood. This is where the problem enters into the equation.
There are times during the pregnancy and especially during the delivery when blood from your baby can cross into the mom’s bloodstream. When the mom’s blood is Rh-negative and the unborn baby’s is Rh-positive the mom’s blood will react by recognizing the baby’s blood as a foreign substance and will build antibodies against the baby’s Rh-positive blood. Typically, these antibodies won’t cause any harm to the baby if this is a first pregnancy for the mom-to-be because the baby is usually born before any of the antibodies can cause any harm. Because the antibodies stay in the mother’s body, they are there if the woman has other pregnancies and these later pregnancies in which the fetus turns out again to be Rh-positive will be impacted in a negative fashion by these antibodies.
These Rh antibodies will cross the placenta and attack the fetus’s red blood cells, which can lead to the baby developing hemolytic anemia. The baby’s red blood cells will be destroyed faster than the baby’s bone marrow can replace them which can lead to serious health issues because without red blood cells, the baby won’t have enough oxygen. Severe hemolytic anemia can be fatal to the baby.
It is important to have early and proper prenatal care so that with screening Rh incompatibility can be caught early on in the pregnancy so that treatment can be prescribed and the baby monitored for signs of distress.
Rh immune globulin will be injected to stop the mom’s body form making Rh antibodies. When this injection is given, it will prevent the health problems of Rh incompatibility from occurring.
When women are given a blood transfusion and Rh incompatibility occurs the Rh antibodies could be triggered. A miscarriage can also trigger this situation too. If Rh immune globulin is given right after these two evens occur, the woman may avoid Rh incompatibility in future pregnancies. Your obstetrician will use ultrasound to monitor the condition of your unborn baby. Once the baby is born a pediatrician (baby doctor) or a hematologist will treat the baby for hemolytic anemia or other related problems that may have developed as a result of the Rh incompatibility.
Recommended Reading
- Rh Incompatibility In Pregnancy
- Understanding Rh Incompatibility
- Blood Diseases Newborns Get
