Mumbai: After a week of battling for life at KEM Hospital, a newborn suffering from Hemolytic Disease of the Newborn (HDN) finally received one unit of fresh whole blood of the O Positive group. The newborn, just eight days old, faces the risk that any further delay could lead to worsening jaundice, anemia, and, in severe cases, potentially fatal complications such as hydrops fetalis.
The only effective treatment is an exchange transfusion — gradually removing the baby’s blood and replacing it with fresh whole blood.
Delay in Whole Blood Supply Exposes Gaps in Mumbai’s Public Hospitals
According to KEM doctors, the patient received one unit of ‘O’ Positive whole blood from Shatabdi BDBA Hospital, Kandivali. But, the case has exposed how poorly equipped civic- and state-run hospitals in Mumbai are — with the unavailability of fresh whole blood reportedly delaying a life-saving procedure.
HDN occurs when a mother with a negative blood group gives birth to a baby with a positive blood group, causing her immune system to produce antibodies that attack the infant’s red blood cells.
Preventive Injection Could Have Averted HDN, Says Doctor
“The first child is usually unaffected, but subsequent positive-blood-group babies are at risk of red cell destruction, severe jaundice, and brain damage. In this case, the mother did not receive the preventive injection after her first delivery,” said a doctor from the hospital.
Only a Handful of Mumbai Hospitals Store Fresh Whole Blood
However, most blood banks, including KEM’s, do not store whole blood. Instead, they separate donations into components such as packed red cells, platelets, and plasma. Normally, fresh whole blood is available at only a handful of centres, including Shatabdi BDBA Kandivali, KB Bhabha Bandra, GT, Cama, and to some extent JJ and Nair hospitals.
O Positive Blood Can Be Arranged Within Hours, Says Blood Centre Expert
Nitin Maniar, from Samarpan Blood Centre, Ghatkopar, explained that since most hospital blood banks separate blood into components, obtaining whole blood can be challenging.
However, he noted that O Positive is a universal donor type and easy to source. “Two donors can be called, and their blood kept whole. The process takes just three to four hours,” he said.
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Further Delay Could Have Caused Irreversible Brain Damage
Doctors warn that any further delay could have caused irreversible brain damage and permanent mental disability. A health expert says that there might be some miscommunication between the treating doctors and the parents. “It is also the responsibility of the hospital blood bank to arrange for donors in such critical cases,” the expert said.
