What if father is rh negative

If your blood is Rh-negative, it will also be tested for antibodies to Rh-positive blood. If you have antibodies, that means that you have been sensitized to Rh-positive blood.

The antibodies can now kill Rh-positive red blood cells. If you are Rh-negative and your partner is Rh-positive, your fetus is likely to be Rh-positive. If you are pregnant or have miscarried, or if you have had an elective abortion, a partial molar pregnancy, or an ectopic pregnancy, you will need testing to see if you have been sensitized to Rh-positive blood. All pregnant women have an indirect Coombs test during early pregnancy.

If you are already Rh-sensitized or become sensitized while pregnant, close monitoring is important to determine whether your fetus is being harmed. If your blood is Rh-negative and you have been sensitized to Rh-positive blood, you now have antibodies to Rh-positive blood. The antibodies kill Rh-positive red blood cells.

If you become pregnant with an Rh-positive baby fetus , the antibodies can destroy your fetus's red blood cells. This can cause anemia. If you are already Rh-sensitized and are pregnant, your treatment will focus on preventing or minimizing fetal harm and on avoiding early preterm delivery. Treatment options depend on how well or poorly the fetus is doing. If you are an Rh-negative woman and you have conceived with an Rh-negative partner, you are not at risk of Rh sensitization during pregnancy.

Most health professionals treat all Rh-negative pregnant women as though the father might be Rh-positive. If you are already sensitized to the Rh factor, your pregnancy will need to be closely monitored to prevent fetal harm. For more information on fetal and newborn treatment, see Treatment Overview. If you are unsensitized Rh-negative, treatment focuses on preventing Rh sensitization during pregnancy and childbirth. Rh immune globulin such as WinRho is a highly effective treatment for preventing sensitization.

Rh immune globulin is also needed within 72 hours after vaginal bleeding, a miscarriage, partial molar pregnancy, ectopic pregnancy, or abortion. Use of Rh immune globulin is effective in preventing Rh sensitization. Rh immune globulin contains Rh antibodies that have been purified from human donors.

This treatment prevents an unsensitized Rh-negative mother from making antibodies against her fetus's Rh-positive blood. If an affected fetus younger than 34 weeks needs to be delivered, corticosteroid medicine betamethasone or dexamethasone may be given to the mother to speed fetal lung development before a premature birth. An intrauterine fetal blood transfusion is sometimes used to supply healthy blood to a fetus with severe hemolytic disease of the newborn also called Rh disease or erythroblastosis fetalis.

A blood transfusion or exchange transfusion is sometimes given to a newborn to treat severe anemia or jaundice related to Rh disease. Author: Healthwise Staff. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated, disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information.

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Top of the page. Topic Overview What is Rh sensitization during pregnancy? What causes Rh sensitization during pregnancy? If you are at risk, Rh sensitization can almost always be prevented.

If you are already sensitized, treatment can help protect your baby. Who gets Rh sensitization during pregnancy? If the mother is Rh-negative and the father is Rh-positive, there is a good chance the baby will have Rh-positive blood.

Rh sensitization can occur. If both parents have Rh-negative blood, the baby will have Rh-negative blood. Since the mother's blood and the baby's blood match, sensitization will not occur.

How is Rh sensitization diagnosed? If you have Rh-negative blood but are not sensitized: The blood test may be repeated between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy. If the test still shows that you are not sensitized, you probably will not need another antibody test until delivery. You might need to have the test again if you have an amniocentesis, if your pregnancy goes beyond 40 weeks, or if you have a problem such as abruptio placenta , which could cause bleeding in the uterus.

Your baby will have a blood test at birth. If the newborn has Rh-positive blood, you will have an antibody test to see if you were sensitized during late pregnancy or childbirth. You may have: Regular blood tests, to check the level of antibodies in your blood. Doppler ultrasound , to check blood flow to the baby's brain.

This can show anemia and how severe it is. Amniocentesis after 15 weeks, to check the baby's blood type and Rh factor and to look for problems. How is Rh sensitization prevented? This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated, disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use.

Learn how we develop our content. To learn more about Healthwise, visit Healthwise. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.

Updated visitor guidelines. Top of the page. Rh Sensitization During Pregnancy. Topic Overview What is Rh sensitization during pregnancy? What causes Rh sensitization during pregnancy? If you are at risk, Rh sensitization can almost always be prevented. If you are already sensitized, treatment can help protect your baby. Who gets Rh sensitization during pregnancy?

If the mother is Rh-negative and the father is Rh-positive, there is a good chance the baby will have Rh-positive blood. Rh sensitization can occur. If both parents have Rh-negative blood, the baby will have Rh-negative blood. Since the mother's blood and the baby's blood match, sensitization will not occur. How is Rh sensitization diagnosed? If you have Rh-negative blood but are not sensitized: The blood test may be repeated between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy.

If the test still shows that you are not sensitized, you probably will not need another antibody test until delivery. You might need to have the test again if you have an amniocentesis, if your pregnancy goes beyond 40 weeks, or if you have a problem such as placenta abruptio , which could cause bleeding in the uterus. Your baby will have a blood test at birth. If the newborn has Rh-positive blood, you will have an antibody test to see if you were sensitized during late pregnancy or childbirth.

If you are Rh-sensitized, your doctor will watch your pregnancy carefully. You may have: Regular blood tests, to check the level of antibodies in your blood.

Doppler ultrasound , to check blood flow to the baby's brain. This can show anemia and how severe it is. Amniocentesis after 15 weeks, to check the baby's blood type and Rh factor and to look for problems.

How is Rh sensitization prevented? You may get a shot of Rh immune globulin: If you have a test such as an amniocentesis. Around week 28 of your pregnancy. After delivery if your newborn is Rh-positive.

The shots won't work if you are already Rh-sensitized. How is it treated? Treatment of the baby is based on how severe the loss of red blood cells anemia is. If the baby's anemia is mild, you will just have more testing than usual while you are pregnant. The baby may not need any special treatment after birth. If anemia is getting worse, it may be safest to deliver the baby early. After delivery, some babies need a blood transfusion or treatment for jaundice.

For severe anemia, a baby can have a blood transfusion while still in the uterus. This can help keep the baby healthy until he or she is mature enough to be delivered. You may have an early C-section , and the baby may need to have another blood transfusion right after birth.

Cause Rh sensitization can occur when a person with Rh-negative blood is exposed to Rh-positive blood. Symptoms If you are already Rh-sensitized or become Rh-sensitized while pregnant, you will not have any unusual symptoms. What Happens If you are Rh-negative Unless you are given Rh immune globulin just before or after a high-risk event, such as miscarriage, amniocentesis, abortion, ectopic pregnancy, or childbirth, you have a chance of becoming sensitized to an Rh-positive fetus's blood.

If you have been Rh-sensitized in the past If you have been Rh-sensitized in the past, you must be closely watched during any pregnancy with an Rh-positive partner, because your fetus is more likely to have Rh-positive blood. Mild Rh disease involves limited destruction of fetal red blood cells, possibly resulting in mild fetal anemia.

The fetus can usually be carried to term and requires no special treatment but may have problems with jaundice after birth. Mild Rh disease is more likely to develop in the first pregnancy after sensitization has occurred. Moderate Rh disease involves the destruction of larger numbers of fetal red blood cells. The fetus may develop an enlarged liver and may become moderately anemic.

The fetus may need to be delivered before term and may require a blood transfusion before while in the uterus or after birth. A newborn with moderate Rh disease is watched closely for jaundice. Severe Rh disease fetal hydrops involves widespread destruction of fetal red blood cells. The fetus develops severe anemia, liver and spleen enlargement, increased bilirubin levels, and fluid retention edema.

The fetus may need one or more blood transfusions before birth. A baby may have the blood type and Rh factor of either parent, or a combination of both parents. There can be a problem when an Rh negative mother has a baby with an Rh positive father. If the baby's Rh factor is positive, like their father's, it can be an issue if the baby's red blood cells cross to the Rh negative mother.

When that happens, the mom becomes sensitized to Rh positive blood. This often happens at birth when the placenta breaks away. It can occur during a miscarriage or fall. It may also happen during a prenatal test. These can include amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling.

These tests use a needle to take a sample of tissue. They may cause bleeding. Your immune system responds by making antibodies to fight and destroy these foreign cells. Your immune system stores these antibodies in case these foreign cells come back again. It can happen in a future pregnancy. You are now Rh sensitized. Most issues occur in future pregnancies with another Rh positive baby. During that pregnancy, your antibodies cross the placenta to fight the Rh positive cells in your baby's body.

As the antibodies destroy the cells, your baby gets sick. Your baby could have jaundice, heart failure, and enlarged organs. Women who are Rh negative and are pregnant with a baby whose father is Rh positive are at risk for this condition. A mother has no signs of Rh disease. But your baby can have problems if you develop antibodies. Symptoms can occur a bit differently in each pregnancy and child.

During pregnancy, symptoms may include:. A yellow coloring of amniotic fluid. This color may be because of bilirubin. This is a substance that is released when blood cells break down. It then might begin making antibodies proteins that act as protectors if foreign cells enter the body against the Rh protein. Rh-negative pregnant women can be exposed to the Rh protein that might cause antibody production in other ways too.

These include:. Rh antibodies are harmless until the mother's second or later pregnancies. If she is ever carrying another Rh-positive child, her Rh antibodies will recognize the Rh proteins on the surface of the baby's blood cells as foreign. Her antibodies will pass into the baby's bloodstream and attack those cells. This can make the baby's red blood cells swell and rupture. This is known as hemolytic or Rh disease of the newborn. It can make a baby's blood count get very low.

If a pregnant woman has the potential to develop Rh incompatibility, doctors give her a series of two Rh immune-globulin shots during her first pregnancy.