I have seen lots of questions and answers about RH- I am just curious as to what exactly it means. I asked about it in the Health section and only got one answer. It refered it to having to do with blood type or something. With that in mind, would a person with a negative blood type be RH- or is it determined another way?
Just curious and trying to understand.
2006-08-01 09:56:26 · 9 answers · asked by real_sweetheart_76 5 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Pregnancy
I've seen it alot in this catergory so I thought I'd post it here.
2006-08-01 09:57:03 · update #1
everyone has a blood type....mine is O negative....and say yours is A positive.....The letter represents what type of blood you have....the negative or positive represents whether you have a protien on your blood cells....most people do have a protien making their blood positive....since mine is negative I lack that protien that most people have....the problem with the Rh factor is that when a woman who is negative has a baby with someone is positive it can harm the mother if the babys positive blood enters her blood stream (usually durring childbirth)...since the mother is negative and the baby is positive if the blood does get into the mothers blood stream the mothers blood will see the babys blood as foreign and start to kill it (like a virus) but then gets confused and starts killing her own blood cells as well making her very sick and she can have problems after the pregnancy having other children....but to correct that problem doctors will give a pregnant woman a shot called RhoGam when shes 28 weeks pregnant and then again within 24 hours after her baby is born....the shot kinda tricks the mothers blood into accepting the babys blood if it gets into her blood stream so it wont try to kill the blood cells....hope that answers your question
2006-08-01 10:09:54 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 9⤊ 1⤋
I've been worrying about this myself. My blood type is A- (meaning I'm lacking the RH protein.) If you were A+ (or B+, or AB,+ or O-) then that means you have the protein and have nothing to worry about.
Most people - about 85% - are Rh positive. But if a woman who is Rh negative and a man who is Rh positive conceive a baby, there is the potential for a baby to have a health problem. The baby growing inside the Rh-negative mother may have Rh-positive blood, inherited from the father. Approximately half of the children born to an Rh-negative mother and Rh-positive father will be Rh positive.
Rh incompatibility usually isn't a problem if it's the mother's first pregnancy because, unless there's some sort of abnormality, the fetus's blood does not normally enter the mother's circulatory system during the course of the pregnancy.
I would still go to the doctor and have them monitor you closely. My mother had 2 miscarriages because she didn't know she was Rh- . If you go to the link I provided then I'm sure it will answer all the questions you have. If not then google it.
2006-08-01 17:50:30 · answer #2 · answered by xcrystal0587x 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In addition to the blood group (A, B, O, AB), the Rh factor is written as either positive (present) or negative (absent). Most people are Rh positive. This factor does not effect your health except during pregnancy.
A woman is at risk when she has a negative Rh factor and her partner has a positive Rh factor. This combination can produce a child who is Rh positive. While the mother's and baby's blood systems are separate there are times when the blood from the baby can enter into the mother's system. This can cause the mother to create antibodies against the Rh factor, thus treating an Rh positive baby like an intruder in her body
2006-08-01 17:03:23 · answer #3 · answered by Brandy B 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm RH-...so I don't carry the positive antibodies in my blood...when you are pregnant, and are RH- you need to make your Dr aware of your blood type. If my baby has RH+ blood, and our blood mixes, my blood treats the baby like an infection, and killd the pregnancy. You have to get Rhogam shots to give you the positive antibodies so that this doesn't happen. You get it at about 16-20 weeks, and then again after you deliver (they test the baby..if its RH- then you don't get another shot...if its RH+ then you get more Rhogam) If you have any bleeding at all during the pregnancy, you go and get a rhogam shot. Its not really as bad as it all seems.
2006-08-01 19:01:12 · answer #4 · answered by mommy_2_liam 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Rh (Rhesus) is a protein. It is found on the surface of red blood cells in nearly 85 percent of the population. Individuals with this protein are said to be Rh positive. Individuals who do not have this protein are said to be Rh negative.
2006-08-01 17:02:08 · answer #5 · answered by tigergirl301 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have Rh- blood, O-. I had to have a RhoGam shot at 28 weeks, and then another after my daughters were born(because they had positive blood). The shot keeps your body from attacking your unborn child and future children.
2006-08-01 17:09:25 · answer #6 · answered by Aumatra 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the Rh factor positive or negative. It can cause complications with a pregnancy if a mother has a neg. so special meds are given
2006-08-01 17:03:15 · answer #7 · answered by pebble 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am not too sure exactly what it means, but remember to tell your doctor right away when and if you ever become pregnant.
If your neg. and your man's pos. The baby needs some kind of needle after it's born. And something else I think during the pregnancy.
My hubby and I are both neg. and we both still needed to be tested for both of my kids.
2006-08-01 17:03:00 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Just do a search for it in Yahoo or Google search
2006-08-01 16:59:26 · answer #9 · answered by Coast2CoastChat.com 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋