Introduction to the Rhesus Blood Group

The Rh blood group system is one of the largest and most polymorphic. This presentation describes several Rh antigens and antibodies of clinical significance, Weak D phenotypes, and rare phenotypes that result from deletions and gene mutations. In addition, different nomenclature systems are explained.

Lecture Presenter
Justin R. Rhees, MS, MLS(ASCP)CM, SBBCM, MLS(ASCP)CM SBBCM
Justin R. Rhees, MS, MLS(ASCP)CM, SBBCM
Assistant Professor, Medical Laboratory Sciences, Department of Pathology, University of Utah School of Medicine

Justin received his M.S. Degree in Laboratory Medicine and Biomedical Science at the University of Utah. He is a Specialist in Blood Bank Technology, board certified by the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP), and is an active member of AABB, the South Central Association of Blood Banks (SCABB), and the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science (ASCLS).

Objectives

After this presentation, participants will be able to:

Describe the major Rhesus (Rh) blood group antigens in terms of biochemical structure and inheritance.
Describe the characteristics of Rh antibodies.
Translate the five major Rh antigens, genotypes, and haplotypes from Fisher-Race to Wiener nomenclature.
State the purpose of Fisher-Race, Wiener, Rosenfield, and ISBT nomenclatures.