ABO Group and Rh Type

Overview:

Your blood group is set by proteins and sugars on the surface of your red blood cells. The ABO system sorts blood into four groups, A, B, AB and O, and the Rh system adds whether a particular protein called the D antigen is present, making you Rh positive or Rh negative. These are inherited and do not change. Knowing your group matters most when blood needs to be matched, as in a transfusion or surgery, and during pregnancy, where an Rh negative parent carrying an Rh positive baby may need treatment to prevent an immune reaction in a later pregnancy.

Categories:

Blood

Biomarkers:

2 biomarkers