ABO Incompatibility and Neonatal Outcome with Reference to Hemolytic Disease of Newborn

Among the conditions capable of causing hemolytic disease of newborn, blood group incompatibility is the most common cause of which most severe forms are encountered in Rh incompatibility. However with availability of effective antenatal care in detecting Rh negative mothers and successful administration of Rh immunoglobulin ABO incompatibility has emerged the most common cause of haemolytic disease of newborn Objective 1. To determine the incidence of ABO incompatibility and the incidence of neonatal jaundice in ABO incompatibility 2. To determine the risk factors for development of neonatal jaundice in ABO incompatibility 3. To determine the perinatal outcome of ABO incompatible babies Material and Methods: A prospective case control study conducted in the department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, SAT hospital, government medical college Trivandrum. All O positive mothers delivered during the period were included in the study. Among the ABO incompatible babies, the development of jaundice was taken as the outcome and those babies who did not develop jaundice were taken as control. Risk factors for the development of jaundice in ABO incompatibility were assessed Statistical analysis was performed using chi square test Results: A total of 250 O positive mothers were included in the study. Out of this 102(40.8%) babies had ABO incompatibility, out of this 36% babies had jaundice. Jaundice due to ABO incompatibility was more in preterm babies and babies of those mothers who were given oxytocin augmentation. Among the jaundiced babies 27% underwent exchange transfusion Conclusion: ABO haemolytic disease of the newborn is characterised by a benign evolution because of a mild degree of hemolysis. Anemia is rare, the main clinical problem being jaundice. Severe haemolysis and anemia requiring exchange transfusion was reported in 27% only.