crystabell
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Hi,
I thought I would post this as it is something that I was not told about whilst I was pregnant with my LO. I was told during my pregnancy that I was Rhesus Negative and would have to have Anti-D injections so that if there were any antibodies in my blood it would prevent them from attacking the placenta etc. During pregnancy I had 2 Anti-D injections, one at 28 weeks and one at 34 weeks and I was told if the baby was Rhesus Positive then I would have another after delivery, and thats all I was told.
I had Jasmine and her cord was tested to check her blood type to see if I needed the Anti-D. we were given a 6 hour discharge which suited us, upon leaving, Jasmine's blood results had yet to come back, and we were asked to call back the following day. After an hour of being home, we got a call and were asked to go back to the hospital asap. We both panicked and hurried straight back. We were told that she had antibodies in her blood that had passed through during delivery. I thought that this would have just meant an Anti-D injection for me as I was not told that there could be other complications.
I was told when I arrived at hospital that Jasmine had Rhesus Negative blood just like mine but mine was Blood Type O and hers is A. I didn't think there was anything to be concerned about as were both had Negative blood so was unsure as to why we would have been called back into hospital. I was then told that she had a condition called 'Hemolytic disease of the newborn.' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhesus_neg ... he_newborn What this means is that the antibodies had passed through during delivery but because the Blood Group was different it meant that she had high levels of 'Bilirubin.' Bilirubin levels have to be monitored closely as they break down the red blood cells and this can lead to a low blood count. This in turn can lead to the baby becoing Anaemic or Jaundiced as well as other conditions.
Over the next 24 hours Jasmine had to have blood tests done every 4-6 hours to check the Bilirubin levels. She had to have blood taken every 4 hours, which they did from her hands and heels, it was awful to watch but she was really good. Luckily hers never increased which is a good sign but she will still need to be checked at 2-6 weeks old to make sure that her blood count has not dropped.
When we were asked to go back because of the above, they didn't say we would be staying so I took nothing, then when the results came back and confirmed she did have antibodies it was about 10pm, we were sent to the ward and OH had to go home. They did say he could bring my things but it was late and I would be seeing him early the following day. So just as a tip, if you do get called back, make sure you take your bags.
Hope this gives some of you some extra info, I was unaware of it and was really scared when we were told. hopefully it won't happen to any of you but is good to understand what could happen.
Crystal xx
I thought I would post this as it is something that I was not told about whilst I was pregnant with my LO. I was told during my pregnancy that I was Rhesus Negative and would have to have Anti-D injections so that if there were any antibodies in my blood it would prevent them from attacking the placenta etc. During pregnancy I had 2 Anti-D injections, one at 28 weeks and one at 34 weeks and I was told if the baby was Rhesus Positive then I would have another after delivery, and thats all I was told.
I had Jasmine and her cord was tested to check her blood type to see if I needed the Anti-D. we were given a 6 hour discharge which suited us, upon leaving, Jasmine's blood results had yet to come back, and we were asked to call back the following day. After an hour of being home, we got a call and were asked to go back to the hospital asap. We both panicked and hurried straight back. We were told that she had antibodies in her blood that had passed through during delivery. I thought that this would have just meant an Anti-D injection for me as I was not told that there could be other complications.
I was told when I arrived at hospital that Jasmine had Rhesus Negative blood just like mine but mine was Blood Type O and hers is A. I didn't think there was anything to be concerned about as were both had Negative blood so was unsure as to why we would have been called back into hospital. I was then told that she had a condition called 'Hemolytic disease of the newborn.' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhesus_neg ... he_newborn What this means is that the antibodies had passed through during delivery but because the Blood Group was different it meant that she had high levels of 'Bilirubin.' Bilirubin levels have to be monitored closely as they break down the red blood cells and this can lead to a low blood count. This in turn can lead to the baby becoing Anaemic or Jaundiced as well as other conditions.
Over the next 24 hours Jasmine had to have blood tests done every 4-6 hours to check the Bilirubin levels. She had to have blood taken every 4 hours, which they did from her hands and heels, it was awful to watch but she was really good. Luckily hers never increased which is a good sign but she will still need to be checked at 2-6 weeks old to make sure that her blood count has not dropped.
When we were asked to go back because of the above, they didn't say we would be staying so I took nothing, then when the results came back and confirmed she did have antibodies it was about 10pm, we were sent to the ward and OH had to go home. They did say he could bring my things but it was late and I would be seeing him early the following day. So just as a tip, if you do get called back, make sure you take your bags.
Hope this gives some of you some extra info, I was unaware of it and was really scared when we were told. hopefully it won't happen to any of you but is good to understand what could happen.
Crystal xx
