Rhesus incompatibility, colloquially known as blood group incompatibility, primarily affects pregnant women and their unborn children in their second pregnancy. In the case of rhesus incompatibility, the rhesus factor in the mother’s blood does not match that of the unborn child, which can lead to significant health complications for the baby. During regular screening examinations … Rh Incompatibility: Causes, Symptoms & Treatment
What is a Coombs test? The Coombs test is used to detect antibodies against red blood cells (erythrocytes). A so-called Coombs serum is used for the determination of the antibodies. It is obtained from the serum of rabbits and is sensitised to human antibodies. The test is used in suspected cases of haemolytic anaemia, Rhesus … The Coombs Test
The procedure If a direct Coombs test is performed, the red blood cells are filtered out of the patient’s blood. It is to be tested whether there are antibodies of the IgG type on them, which cause haemolytic anaemia or blood group incompatibility in the body. The Coombs serum contains antibodies against human IgG antibodies. … The procedure | The Coombs Test
Introduction Neonatal jaundice – also called neonatal icterus or Icterus neonatorum (ancient Greek ikteros = jaundice) – describes the appearance of yellowing of the skin and sclera of the eyes (“sclerae”) of newborns. This yellow coloration is caused by deposits of the decomposition products of the red blood pigment (hemoglobin). The degradation product responsible for … Neonatal jaundice
Symptoms Often – depending on the severity of the jaundice – there is only a visible yellowing of the skin and the sclerae of the newborn without any further symptoms. The yellowing itself is not noticeable to the offspring. This is usually the case with physiological, harmless neonatal jaundice. If, however, for various reasons, massive … Symptoms | Neonatal jaundice
ConsequencesLate consequences A physiological, harmless newborn icterus of light to medium intensity usually heals on its own without any consequences. Therefore, there are no (late) consequences. However, if the bilirubin concentration in the blood exceeds a certain threshold value (Icterus gravis = more than 20 mg/dl), there is a risk that the bilirubin will “cross … ConsequencesLate consequences | Neonatal jaundice
Synonyms Rhesus, rhesus factor, blood groups Introduction The rhesus factor is, similar to the AB0 blood group system, a classification of blood groups determined by proteins on the surface of red blood cells (erythrocytes). Like all cells, red blood cells contain a large number of protein molecules against which the body’s immune responses can be … Rhesus – System
Epidemiology In Germany and Central Europe, about 83% of the population is rhesus positive, which may lead to shortages of suitable transfusion blood for rhesus negative recipients of blood donations. The situation for rhesus-negative recipients is even more critical in Eastern Europe, where some of them represent only 4% of the population. Clinical significance The … Epidemiology | Rhesus – System
Synonyms Blood group incompatibility Introduction Rhesus incompatibility (Rhesus- Incompatibility, Rh- Incompatibility) is an incompatibility between maternal and fetal blood. Typical for the occurrence of an incompatibility reaction is a Rhesus negative mother giving birth to a Rhesus positive child. This incompatibility can lead to hemolysis of the fetal erythrocytes and, in the worst case, to … Rhesus incompatibility
What is a kernicterus? Kernikterus is an increased accumulation of bilirubin in the brain, which can occur in newborns. Various causes and developmental mechanisms play a role here. Icterus refers to jaundice, which can occur in newborns but also in adults due to increased bilirubin levels, especially in the eyes and skin. Bilirubin is a … Kernikterus
Diagnosis of nictitus The diagnosis of the nuclear icterus is made on the basis of clinical abnormalities and laboratory chemical examinations. If the newborn child shows a yellowing of the skin before the 3rd or after the 10th day of life, a laboratory examination should be performed. If the bilirubin levels in the blood are … Diagnosis of nictitus | Kernikterus
Course of disease The course of the disease can be very variable. In principle, a nuclear icterus can be highly acute or chronic. The decisive factor here is how fulminant the causative event is, how high the bilirubin levels rise and how well the therapy manages to control the event. In most cases, this starts … Course of disease | Kernikterus
