Before talking about Rh-conflict during pregnancy, you need to understand what the Rh factor is, and in what situations this conflict develops. So, the Rh factor is one of the blood group antigens, which is found on the surface of red blood cells (red blood cells). Most people have these antigens (or proteins) present, but sometimes they are not.
If a person has Rhesus factor on the surface of red blood cells, then they say that he is Rh-positive, if there are none, Rhesus-negative. And then you can not say which rhesus is better. They are just different - that's all.
An important Rh factor is during pregnancy. If the future mother is Rh-negative, and the father of the child is Rh-positive, there is a risk of developing Rh-conflict between mother and child. That is, if the child will have a Rh factor different from the female, this can lead to sensitization of the mother and fetus.
The Rh factor of the mother and child factors occurs in 75% of cases, if the child's parents have different Rh factors. Of course, this is not an excuse to refuse to create a family, because during the first pregnancy the conflict does not always arise, and with proper management of pregnancy problems with it can be avoided in subsequent pregnancies.
When there is a rhesus conflict?
If you become pregnant for the first time, then the risk of developing Rh-conflict is small, since there are no antibodies to Rh-negative bodies in the mother's body. During pregnancy and the first meeting of two rhesus, not so many antibodies are produced. But if too much erythrocytes of the fetus gets into the blood of the mother, then in the body it has enough "memory cells" to develop antibodies against the Rhesus factor in subsequent pregnancies.
The frequency of this situation depends on what ended the first pregnancy. So, if:
- there was a miscarriage - antibodies in the blood are produced in 3-4% of cases;
- a medical abortion was carried out - the risk of conflict is increased to 5-6%;
- ectopic pregnancy occurred - in 1% of cases;
- The pregnancy ended in a normal birth - the risk is 10-15%.
In addition, the risk of sensitization increases after caesarean section and placental abruption. But, however that may be, all mothers with a risk of Rhesus-Conflity need prevention of such consequences as hemolytic disease of the fetus .
Rhesus conflict and its consequences
If the mother has Rh-antibodies, and the child's Rh-positive, then the antibodies perceive the child as something alien and attack his erythrocytes. In his blood in response, many bilirubin are produced, which dyes the skin yellow. The most terrible thing in this case is that bilirubin can damage the child's brain.
Further, since the red blood cells of the fetus are destroyed by the antibodies of the mother, his liver and spleen urgently accelerate the production of new red blood cells, while they themselves increase in size. And yet they can not cope with the replenishment of the destroyed red blood cells, and there is a strong oxygen starvation of the fetus, since the red blood cells do not deliver oxygen in the right quantities.
The most serious consequence of Rhesus-conflict is its last stage - the development of hydrocephalus, which can lead to its intrauterine death .
If you have antibodies in your blood and their titer increases, you need treatment in a special perinatal ward, where you and the child will be given constant attention. If you manage to "hold out" the pregnancy to 38 weeks, you will have a planned caesarean section. If not, the child will be given a blood transfusion in utero, that is, through the abdominal wall of the mother to the umbilical vein and 20-50 ml of erythrocyte mass will be poured into it.