MISCARRIAGE AND RH SENSITIZATION!
Hello Steemians!
Hope you are good today?
Am really glad am finally able to do this post. Was supposed to post this yesterday but menstral cramps did not allow me,so here I am doing it today.
What is miscarriage?
Miscarriage is the loss of a foetus on or before the 20th week of pregnancy. Research statistics has shown that 80% miscarriages occur within the first trimester of pregnancy,ie.within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
What is Rh sensitization?
If a person is Rh positive,an inherited protein is present on the surface of their red blood cell and it is called Rh factor.If a person is Rh negative, they lack this protein on the surface of their red blood cell. If a person is Rh negative and their blood comes in contact with that of an Rh positive person, their system will react by producing antibodies to destroy the Rh factor, this reaction is known as Rh sensitization.
How does a person get the Rh factor?
If a father is Rh positive and the mother is Rh Negative, their offspring will either be Rh positive or Rh negative(meaning their offspring will either have no Rh factor or will have an Rh factor). If both parents are Rh positive, their offspring will be Rh positive(meaning their offspring will have the Rh factor), if both parents are Rh negative, their offspring will be Rh negative(meaning their offspring will have no Rh factor)
Can Rh sensitization cause complications after a miscarriage?
Yes, if the mother is Rh negative and the foetus is Rh positive. After miscarriage, the blood of the foetus comes in contact with that of the mother and she becomes Rh sensitized.
The complication with becoming Rh sensitized due to previous miscarriages is that when the woman becomes pregnant again with an Rh positive foetus and has not received any treatment,the antibodies produced after the previous miscarriages to fight the Rh factor of the Rh positive foetus causes a problem to the current pregnancy.
The problem is usually a type of anaemia called hemolytic anaemia. Here the antibodies generated by the immune system to fight the Rh factor cause the Red blood cells to be destroyed faster than the body can replace. Red blood cells carry oxygen to all parts of the body and without enough red blood cells, enough oxygen will not get to the foetus which can lead to fatal illness or even death of the foetus. This can explain why women who have had miscarriages and are not properly treated end up having subsequent miscarriages.
Can Rh sensitization be prevented after miscarriage?
Yes. The goal is to prevent the immune system from generating antibodies to fight the Rh factor. So, immediately after a miscarriage,the victim should undergo a test, if she is Rh negative, then she should be given a shot of Rh immunoglobulin(Rhlg).Rhlg prevents the body from producing antibodies to destroy the Rh factor and this prevents hemolytic anaemia, fatal loss or eventual death of a future pregnancy.
Thanks for reading!
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Thank You
awesomely written! it is because things like these are not known that makes some people feel their village people are logged on to their marital life matters on a 5G wireless level.however it's just as a result of pure ignorance
Lol. You are so funny. I loved the way you passed the comment. Thanks for dropping by!
Quite an insightful post, sorry about the cramps. I hope you're feeling much better now.
Yes. I do. Thank you dear.
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I remember learning about this in biology, at school. Our bodies are truly amazing (and sometimes cruel) creations.
Yes, you are right.Thanks so much ma'am for stopping by.
well done. very informative.
Namaste, JaiChai
Thanks for visiting my blog!