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Questions about Rhesus factor
Hi everyone, My nearly-15 month old has decided to wean herself, so I am
hoping that this will mean the return of my fertility, so that we can really TTC in earnest. But in the meantime I want to get some answers to my quesions. I am Rh -, my husband and daughter are Rh +. After DD's birth, I had the Rhogam shot (or the equivalent) about 2 days after the birth. I was surprised at this - I thought it would be almost immediate. Anyway, what is the likelihood of complications with no. 2 - any one with experiences both postitive and negative? And would this preclude me in any way form having a home birth? I'm sure it would depend on the midwife, but again, I'm just after experiences. I had a hospital birth with no. 1, and although it was probably the best place to be, as I couldn't get DD to latch till the 4th day, it may have been easier at home, as the midwife may have had more time to spend with me (I am guessing here). With no. 1, I hated the fact that DH had to go almost immediately -he got no sleep, I got no sleep, and he didn't feel the baby was his till we got home 5 days later. So I'm just looking at my options really, as I've got oodles of time to make decisions! Thanks in advance, Cathy DD 8 Jan 2003 TTC #2 |
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Questions about Rhesus factor
Cathy wrote:
After DD's birth, I had the Rhogam shot (or the equivalent) about 2 days after the birth. I was surprised at this - I thought it would be almost immediate. That's fine, the window for receiving it is with in 72 hours of the birth. It actually shows they most likely took the time to test your daughters blood group before they just jumped right in and injected you with something you may not of needed. Good luck on ttc. Andrea |
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Questions about Rhesus factor
My SIL is Rh- and had her 3rd at home.
S |
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Questions about Rhesus factor
Cathy wrote:
Hi everyone, My nearly-15 month old has decided to wean herself, so I am hoping that this will mean the return of my fertility, so that we can really TTC in earnest. But in the meantime I want to get some answers to my quesions. I am Rh -, my husband and daughter are Rh +. After DD's birth, I had the Rhogam shot (or the equivalent) about 2 days after the birth. I was surprised at this - I thought it would be almost immediate. The window for effectiveness is 72 hours. Anyway, what is the likelihood of complications with no. 2 - any one with experiences both postitive and negative? The only question is whether you got sensitized. You can check that with a simple blood test before you get pregnant. (You'll get tested as part of your regular prenatal bloodwork anyway, but if you would not want to go through a complicated Rh sensitized pregnancy in the unlikely event that you were sensitized, you could check in advance.) Odds are very good that you are not sensitized. And would this preclude me in any way form having a home birth? I'm sure it would depend on the midwife, but again, I'm just after experiences. I can't imagine a midwife who'd turn you away for being Rh- as long as you weren't sensitized. I had three Rh+ babies at home, and I'm Rh-. Best wishes, Ericka |
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Questions about Rhesus factor
"Cathy" wrote in message ...
I am Rh -, my husband and daughter are Rh +. After DD's birth, I had the Rhogam shot (or the equivalent) about 2 days after the birth. I was surprised at this - I thought it would be almost immediate. The injection is usually timed to be within 72 hours (which is an arbitrary number), but it can be immediately following birth or up to one year. (FYI: The Rh(D)- factor is recessive, so when paternity is certain and his blood type is Rh(D)+, mother will be making Rh(D)+ babies.) And would this preclude me in any way form having a home birth? Nope! Depending where you are, midwives have access to RhoGAM in their practices. If not, they can refer you to a physician (on your insurance plan if possible to save you $) for the prophylactic RhoGAM at 28 weeks and postpartum. Kris, an apprentice midwife |
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Questions about Rhesus factor
I just wrote...
The injection is usually timed to be within 72 hours (which is an arbitrary number), but it can be immediately following birth or up to one year. erp... I meant one month, not year. Rh(D)- mothers to Rh(D)+ babies should be given RhoGAM within 72 hours for best results, but up to 28 days following birth before mother mounts an immune response to Rh(D)+ fetal cells. (Source for that is Understanding Diagnostic Tests in the Childbearing Year, Anne Frye; a clearing house for summaries and guidelines to labs for midwives) Kris |
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Questions about Rhesus factor
"hierophant" wrote in message om... "Cathy" wrote in message ... I am Rh -, my husband and daughter are Rh +. After DD's birth, I had the Rhogam shot (or the equivalent) about 2 days after the birth. I was surprised at this - I thought it would be almost immediate. The injection is usually timed to be within 72 hours (which is an arbitrary number), but it can be immediately following birth or up to one year. (FYI: The Rh(D)- factor is recessive, so when paternity is certain and his blood type is Rh(D)+, mother will be making Rh(D)+ babies.) An Rh- mother and Rh+ father can still produce Rh- children, my parents and I are proof of this. True it is more likely that the baby will be Rh+, but not definite, if the father has one Rh+ allele and one Rh- one, making him Rh+, the baby still has a 50% chance of being Rh-, as there is a 50% chance the father will pass on his Rh- allele. If the father has two Rh+ alleles however, the baby must be Rh+. Hence why they still tested my son's blood type before deciding whether I needed Rhogam. |
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Questions about Rhesus factor
"Cathy" wrote in message ... Hi everyone, My nearly-15 month old has decided to wean herself, so I am hoping that this will mean the return of my fertility, so that we can really TTC in earnest. But in the meantime I want to get some answers to my quesions. I am Rh -, my husband and daughter are Rh +. After DD's birth, I had the Rhogam shot (or the equivalent) about 2 days after the birth. I was surprised at this - I thought it would be almost immediate. Anyway, what is the likelihood of complications with no. 2 - any one with experiences both postitive and negative? And would this preclude me in any way form having a home birth? I'm sure it would depend on the midwife, but again, I'm just after experiences. I had a hospital birth with no. 1, and although it was probably the best place to be, as I couldn't get DD to latch till the 4th day, it may have been easier at home, as the midwife may have had more time to spend with me (I am guessing here). With no. 1, I hated the fact that DH had to go almost immediately -he got no sleep, I got no sleep, and he didn't feel the baby was his till we got home 5 days later. So I'm just looking at my options really, as I've got oodles of time to make decisions! If you are not sensitized -- makes no difference in birth location. Probably even if you did have a freak sensitization but your titer stays low throughout the preg -- makes no difference in birth location. Very low titers do not cause overt disease. You get low titers from prenatal Rhogam itself, which is standard of care in the US. Typically what a homebirth midwife will do is check the baby's rhesus status using cord blood on these little testing cards. Then if the baby is positive she'll give the rhogam shot. My kid's blood never showed positive on the cards, but I had some prenatal testing done that indicated that the baby was Rh+. Now that may have been wrong and my baby really is Rh-, but I went ahead and had some Rhogam anyway. We'll see what her blood type actually turns out to be later I guess. As to prenatal Rhogam (antenatal Anti-D), it's controversial whether you need it or not. I would not take it during pregnancy unless I knew I had fetal cells in my blood, and even then, I would look hard at the benefit I anticipated having. Sometimes the hospital environment impedes breastfeeding -- stresses baby out. Or mom had drugs during labor. -- Dagny |
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Thanks was Questions about Rhesus factor
Thanks heaps to everyone for your responses. I sort of thought things would
be o.k., but I had such an easy first pregnancy, I suppose I am looking at worst case scenarios for the next one. But Rhesus factor is one thing to be mostly eliminated now - and I will start looking seriously at a homebirth. I thought about it for last time, but I moved cities mid way through the pregnancy, and I had real trouble getting a midwife, and she was a hospital only one. So now all we have to do is get no. 2 on the way! Cathy |
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Questions about Rhesus factor
hierophant wrote:
"Cathy" wrote in message ... I am Rh -, my husband and daughter are Rh +. After DD's birth, I had the Rhogam shot (or the equivalent) about 2 days after the birth. I was surprised at this - I thought it would be almost immediate. The injection is usually timed to be within 72 hours (which is an arbitrary number), but it can be immediately following birth or up to one year. Huh? If you miss the 72 hour window, your odds of getting sensitized increase dramatically! (FYI: The Rh(D)- factor is recessive, so when paternity is certain and his blood type is Rh(D)+, mother will be making Rh(D)+ babies.) Not quite. Dad could be phenotypically Rh(D)+ and genotypically +-. In that case, there's a 50/50 chance that any baby will be Rh-. My mother is B-, my father is O+ and I am O- (and my sister is negative, though I'm not sure whether she's B- or O-)--which was a good thing since we were born prior to the widespread use of anti-D. Best wishes, Ericka |
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