Home Features Our Health Matter Today For A Healthy Tomorrow, Rhesus Factor, Episode 2

Our Health Matter Today For A Healthy Tomorrow, Rhesus Factor, Episode 2

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WHAT IS RHESUS FACTOR ?

Rh factor (or Rhesus factor) is a type of protein on the outside or surface of your red blood cells. You inherit the protein, which means you get your Rh factor from your biological parents. If you have the protein, you’re Rh-positive. If you don’t have the protein, you’re Rh-negative. The majority of people, about 85%, are Rh-positive.

In pregnancy, complications may occur if you’re Rh-negative and the foetus is Rh-positive. This is called Rh factor incompatibility. Treatments are available to prevent complications of Rh incompatibility.

This is the cause of many miscarriages of pregnancies in women and even still birth

COMMON BLOOD TYPES

The protein on the surface of your red blood cells determines your blood type. Each blood type also has a positive or negative factor. The positive or negative next to the blood type is your Rh factor. Your Rh factor doesn’t cause problems or hurt your health in any way. It only becomes important when blood types are mixed together, like during pregnancy and childbirth.

The most common blood types are:

A positive.
A negative.
B positive.
B negative.
O positive.
O negative.

WHY IS Rh FACTOR IMPORTANT?

Your Rh factor doesn’t affect your overall health, but it’s important to know your Rh status if you’re pregnant.

SYMPTOMS AND CAUSES

What causes Rh incompatibility?
Rh incompatibility occurs when a person who’s Rh-negative becomes pregnant with a foetus with Rh-positive blood. With Rh incompatibility, your immune system reacts to this difference (known as incompatibility) and creates antibodies. These antibodies drive an immune system attack against the fetus’s red blood cells, which your body thinks are foreign objects. This is called Rh sensitisation. Your pregnancy care provider can prevent this from happening by giving you a shot (injection) of immune globulin.

During pregnancy, you don’t share blood with the foetus you’re carrying. However, a small amount of blood from the fetus can mix with your blood during Labour and delivery (either vaginal or cesarean). It can also happen during:

Tests like amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling (CVS).
Any type of vaginal bleeding during pregnancy.
Injury or trauma to your abdomen.
Early pregnancy complications like miscarriage or ectopic pregnancy.
After external cephalic version (ECV), a maneuver to turn a breech baby.

We Appreciate Cleveland Clinic for their research works.

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