The “null RH”, characterized by the total absence of Rh antigens in red blood cells, is (almost) the rarest blood type in the world: only 50 people have this “golden blood.” They are universal donors – but they can only receive their own blood group.
Saying that blood is vital is little. It circulates through the organs that make up the cardiovascular system – heart, blood vessels and veins – carrying oxygen, nutrients and hormones throughout the body, supporting the immune system and eliminating waste products.
However, when it comes to blood types, the Rh Nulo It is one of the rarest and most difficult to find, which is why it is known as “golden blood.”
Rather, only the recently discovered “”, identified in a woman who was conducting routine analysis before an operation – and who is “the only person in the world that is compatible with themselves.”
To realize why the “golden blood” is so rare, it should first be understood how the blood groups are determined.
Blood types are classified by presence or absence of antigenwhich are proteins fixed to red cells of the blood, and that the immune system attacks if they are strange to them.
This is what explains the positive and negative signs in the eight groups Better known bloodstreams: A+, A-, B+, B-, AB+, Ab-, O+and O-, explains a.
In addition to the ABO system, laboratories also use the HR System to classify the blood. THE Antigen RHD is the most common among more than 50 HR antigens tested, which is why many blood groups are also classified as RHD positive or negative.
What makes HR nulli so special is that the red cells do not have Absolutely no antigen.
For a long time doctors believed that, due to the absence of antigen, Having Blood Null was equivalent to an early death sentence “Until 1961, when an Australian indigenous woman was found to have that blood.”
Since then, they have been Less than 50 people identified with this rare type. Unfortunately, it has advantages and disadvantages, especially in the context of transfusions.
The human body can lose up to about 40% of their blood volume before death or serious complications become inevitable.
In a situation of blood loss, it is crucial manage the correct blood type in a possible transfusion. If a patient receives blood incompatible with his, the Immune system may attack the red cellscausing a potentially fatal reaction.
People with null rh, Fortunately, they are universal donors for individuals with other rare types of HR, since Your cells do not contain antigen. AND similar to what happens with o- blood, which can be used in patients with any common group.
However, unlike people who have bloodwhich in addition to universal donors are also universal receivers, who has null HR can only receive same type blood.
“There is Only nine active donors throughout the community of rare blood donors. Nine ”, stresses Sandra NanceDirector of American Rare Owner Program.
What should a person who has “golden blood” should then do? Essentially, something like “keep it on the bank.”
“For people living with null RH blood, the best options are to donate and freeze your own blood to use it in programmed surgeries, and carefully manage situations such as anemia, with measures such as iron or folic acid, in order to Avoid transfusions whenever possible”, Transfusion Medicine Specialist Zaher Otrock.
