Mother/Fetus Blood type...is Miscarriage due to Incompatabil Posted: 09-08-06 09:19am
If i have B- (negative) blood type and my
partner is positive. I was informed that i
will need an injection just because of the
type of blood combination! Will i have
trouble keeping my baby? I am about 6
weeks now and i'm spotting and cramping.
What are my options, if any?
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DoctorAnswer
Doctor Answer
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Pregnancy Answer A1492 Posted: 09-19-06 03:58am
According to the symptoms you describe
(spotting and abdominal cramps) you might
be experiencing a miscarriage. You need
expert help and you MUST see a
gynecologist immediately!
If this is your first pregnancy, and you
have never had previous miscarriages or
abortions and have never received Rh+
blood then this possible miscarriage is
probably not caused by any Rh
-incompatibility (blood type) between you
and your baby. But to confirm
Rh-incompatibility as a cause for
miscarriage, anti-Rh-antibodies must first
be detected in you and your fetus.
Rh-incompatibility between a mother and
her fetus occurs if the mother is Rh- and
the fetus is Rh+. If the mother is Rh- and
the father is Rh+ there are 50-100%
chances that the baby will be Rh+. A Rh+
fetus stimulates the mother’s immune
system to produce anti-Rh-antibodies
against the baby’s erythrocytes. This
process is called "immunization".
Anti-Rh-antibodies enter into the
fetus’ blood and destroy its
erythrocytes (hemolisis) and then cause
hemolytic anemia and further heart
failure. Bilirubin (a degradation product
from the erythrocytes) then precipitates
in the brain and damages it. The fetus
either dies in its mother’s uterus or is
delivered with damage whose severity
depends upon the degree of hemolytic
anemia.
A mother’s stimulation (immunization)
usually occurs at the end of pregnancy or
during the delivery, except if the mother
hasn’t been already immunized from any
previous deliveries, miscarriages or
abortions. If the mother hasn’t been
previously immunized (has no
anti-Rh-antibodies in her blood) the
current pregnancy will immunize the mother
and the baby will be delivered with no
problems. During her NEXT pregnancy,
however, if the fetus is Rh+, the
mother’s blood will contain enough
antibodies and enough time to destroy the
fetus. To prevent immunization and damage
to the fetus of the NEXT pregnancy, every
Rh- mother MUST be given a SHOT containing
anti-Rh-antibodies soon after delivering
(no longer than 72 hours) a Rh- baby or if
the baby’s Rh-blood type is unknown.
Therefore, the shot you’ve mentioned
won’t help you to keep this pregnancy.
Itf you do lose this baby (miscarry) you
will HAVE TO take the injection shortly
thereafter to prevent another
miscarriage.
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