At the very beginning of pregnancy, one of the first tests a woman gives is a blood test. Particular attention is paid to the determination of the Rh factor. Why is this done?
The main components of human blood are red blood cells. On their surface is a special antigen - the Rh factor. Some people have this antigen, blood has a positive Rh factor. When it is not found in the blood, they say that a person has a negative Rhesus. There are a lot more people with positive Rhesus than with negative ones (more than 85 percent).
Why is it important to know the Rh factor of the blood? These data are necessary for transfusion. For example, if a person has a second blood type negative, then only blood with a negative Rhesus group of the first and second group can be transfused.
Also, the course of pregnancy largely depends on whether the Rhesus factor of the mother and the fetus coincides. In the case when the father has positive and the mother has negative Rhesus, there is the possibility of developing a Rhesus conflict. It occurs if the baby inherits the positive rhesus of the father. Through the placenta, an interaction occurs between the mother and the baby, and in the same way, through the placenta, the antigen enters the mother's body. Rhesus factor is a foreign substance for a pregnant woman. To combat it, antibodies begin to be produced in the blood. If you do not take the necessary measures in time, then the pregnancy can end sadly.
Miscarriage or fading and death of the fetus is possible, because the mother’s antibodies begin to actively fight the new antigen. In this case, the red blood cells in the child are destroyed. The spleen and liver of the fetus begin to increase in size due to the constant production of more and more red blood cells. Hemoglobin in the blood of the fetus falls, anemia appears. These factors can affect the development of hearing organs or cause abnormalities in the development of the brain. In the most severe cases, dropsy develops, which most often leads to death.
If the child was born alive, but with obvious signs of the consequences of the Rh conflict, he undergoes a special blood transfusion, called replacement. For this, the baby is transfused with negative Rhesus blood and conduct rehabilitation measures. If the child has a second blood group with positive Rhesus, then a second blood group (Rhesus negative) is used for transfusion. Such treatment must be carried out in the first day of the baby's life.
How to prevent such a development of pregnancy? It is best that future parents pass a blood test before conception and determine whether or not there is a negative Rh. If the mom and dad of the baby have the same rhesus blood, then do not worry.
If the father determines positive Rhesus and the mother negative, then there are special preventive measures that must be taken before conception in order to prevent the development of Rhesus conflict. Rhesus-negative mothers constantly give blood for antibodies during pregnancy. It is this analysis that will help prevent the onset of Rhesus conflict.
The likelihood of developing complications increases from one pregnancy to another. Even after pregnancy, the same antibodies continue to exist in the mother's body. Therefore, at the beginning of the next pregnancy, when the fetus is still very small, antibodies almost immediately begin to destroy red blood cells, penetrating the placenta. The easiest way to avoid such unpleasant consequences is to use a special drug - anti-Rhesus immunoglobulin. This vaccine removes all antibodies remaining after pregnancy from the blood. Vaccination is necessary immediately after pregnancy.
The recommendations that must be followed by a woman with a negative Rh factor are very simple. It is necessary to observe the entire pregnancy with specialists, and plan the appearance of the baby in advance.