I wonder when they started giving Rhogam prenatally. When I was in nursing school (late 1970s), it was strictly a postpartum thing, best I recall.
It still is, in Europe. There's apparently a 1-2% chance of blood mixing prior to delivery, which is why they now give a prenatal Rhogam shot at 28 weeks. Some women refuse it because (a) they worry about the baby getting exposed to Rhogam, if blood mixing does occur, and (b) they want to wait for the baby's blood to be tested, so that they're not receiving an unnecessary intervention.
I thought about it, and then decided that the risks weren't high enough to make it an issue. I'm refusing some standard interventions (AFP testing, continuous fetal monitoring in labor, antibiotic eyedrops at birth), but I want to pick my battles.
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Date: 2004-12-09 11:09 am (UTC)It still is, in Europe. There's apparently a 1-2% chance of blood mixing prior to delivery, which is why they now give a prenatal Rhogam shot at 28 weeks. Some women refuse it because (a) they worry about the baby getting exposed to Rhogam, if blood mixing does occur, and (b) they want to wait for the baby's blood to be tested, so that they're not receiving an unnecessary intervention.
I thought about it, and then decided that the risks weren't high enough to make it an issue. I'm refusing some standard interventions (AFP testing, continuous fetal monitoring in labor, antibiotic eyedrops at birth), but I want to pick my battles.