A team of doctors led by a senior doctor from the blood bank of Medical College, Manipal identified a rare blood group called ‘pp’ or ‘P null’ phenotype. ABO and Rh D are the commonly typed blood group systems. However, there are more than 200 minor blood group antigens known besides A, B and Rh. A blood type is considered rare if fewer than 1 in 1,000 people have it.
A person is said to have rare blood group when he lacks the high-frequency antigen or multiple common antigens. The Blood Bank at Hospital received samples from a patient who required urgent blood transfusion. The doctors were unable to find a compatible blood unit even after cross-matching with more than 80 units. Extensive immunohematology workup was performed by the blood bank team and further for confirmation, samples were referred to the International Blood group Reference Laboratory (IBGRL), Bristol, UK for…
