Non-Invasive diagnosis of Hemolytic disease of fetus and newborn by cff DNA

Abstract

Introduction: The most common cause of HDFN (Hemolytic Disease of the Fetus and Newborn) is Rh incompatibility between mother and fetus. The result of the incompatibility in the mother's body is the creation of allo-antibodies which can pass through the placenta and lead to lysis of embryo's red blood cells. HDFN may cause anemia, jaundice, hepatosplenomegaly, Kernicterus, encephalopathy and also abortion.

Aim: Conventional methods including cordocentesis and amniocentesis, which are used to detect HDFN, are invasive and may lead to abortion, so the importance of NIPT (Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing) is revealed as this methodology does not have the risks of earlier methods and has high accuracy and sensitivity.

Methods: Data collections have been done using databases: PubMed, Nature and Science Direct. To compare and summarize the different diagnostic methods of HDFN, books and articles that have been published by 2018 are studied.

Result: Incompatibility in maternal and fetal blood groups may cause irreversible damage to the fetus, so an early diagnosis can prevent these problems.

Discussion and Conclusion: NIPT can be done from the 10th week of pregnancy. The specificity and sensitivity of this method is high and the risk of abortion does not exist. It is strongly suggested to do NIPT on mothers with Rh- blood in order to accurately detect fetal Rh type and reduce excessive Rhogam use.