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Home Back to Health Library Print This Page ... Exchange transfusion - series Rh incompatibility Definition: Rh incompatibility is a condition which develops when a pregnant woman has an Rh-negative blood type and the fetus she carries has Rh-positive blood type.
Alternative Names: Rh-induced hemolytic disease of the newborn; Hydrops fetalis
Causes, incidence, and risk factors: During pregnancy, red blood cells from the fetus can get into the mother's bloodstream as she nourishes her child through the placenta. If the mother is Rh-negative, her system cannot tolerate the presence of Rh-positive red blood cells. In such cases, the mother's immune system treats the Rh-positive fetal cells as if they were a foreign substance and makes antibodies against the fetal blood cells. These anti-Rh antibodies may cross the placenta into the fetus, where they destroy the fetus's circulating red blood cells. First-born infants are often not affected unless the mother has had previous miscarriages or abortions, which could have sensitized her system as it takes time for the mother to develop antibodies against the fetal blood. However, second children who are also Rh-positive may be harmed.
Rh incompatibility can cause symptoms ranging from very mild to fatal. In its mildest form, Rh incompatibility causes hemolysis (destruction of the red blood cells) with the release of free | |
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