title: On the complexity of D antigen typing: a handy decision tree in the age of molecular blood group diagnostics.
abstract: RH is the most complex of all 29 blood group systems. New discoveries relating to the RHD gene, and an appreciation of its variant phenotypes such as weak D and partial D, have challenged the way that D status is assigned to both blood donors and blood product recipients. This concise review introduces the current concepts of weak D and partial D and how the identification of these variants has influenced the testing methods for the D antigen. We demonstrate how molecular tests of the RHD gene can and should be used in resolving serological discrepancies, in particular in pregnant women.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Transfusion Medicine, University Hospital Ulm, Germany.
authors.forename: Willy A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Flegel
authors.forename: Gregory A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Denomme
authors.forename: Mark H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Yazer
mesh_terms: D001788:Blood Grouping and Crossmatching / Q000379:methods*; D003657:Decision Making; D003663:Decision Trees; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D012204:Rh-Hr Blood-Group System / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology