title: Alloimmune neonatal neutropenia in Croatia during the 1998-2008 period.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to estimate the incidence of the disease and to analyze laboratory data of 23 newborns undergoing serologic testing for alloimmune neonatal neutropenia (ANN) during the 1998-2008 period in Croatia.
  
  
  METHODS
  Laboratory data on 23 newborns undergoing serologic testing for ANN during the 1998-2008 period and epidemiologic data on the number of live births in Croatia were analyzed. Laboratory testing for ANN included serologic screening of maternal and neonatal sera and granulocytes (neutrophils) by immunofluorescence (IF) method. The monoclonal antibody immobilization of neutrophil antigens (MAINA) was employed to determine anti-HNA antibody specificity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Anti-HNA antibodies were detected in seven (54%) of 13 cases of serologically positive ANN. Only anti-HLA class I antibodies were demonstrated in four (31%) of 13 cases In the 2007-2008 period of prospective data collection, the number of serologically verified ANN cases was one case per 17,323 live births. Results of the prospective study conducted at Maternity Ward, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Sestre milosrdnice University Hospital Center yielded the ANN incidence of one case per 2843 live births.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Monitoring of neutrophil count in neonatal blood and serologic testing for ANN in case of isolated neutropenia in the newborn contributed considerably to timely detection of ANN.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Neonatal alloimmune neutropenia-incidence, serologic diagnosis, antineutrophil antibodies, anti-HNA, anti-HLA class I, Croatia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Platelet and Leukocyte Diagnosis and Hemostasis, Croatian Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia.
authors.forename: Maja
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tomicic
authors.forename: Mirta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Starcevic
authors.forename: Rebeka
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ribicic
authors.forename: Branka
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Golubic-Cepulic
authors.forename: Zeljka
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hundric-Haspl
authors.forename: Irena
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Jukic
mesh_terms: D017523:Croatia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007518:Isoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D007519:Isoantigens / Q000097:blood* / Q000145:classification; D008431:Maternal-Fetal Exchange; D009503:Neutropenia / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D009504:Neutrophils / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D011247:Pregnancy; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D007518:Isoantibodies; D007519:Isoantigens
keywords: Croatia; anti-HLA class I; anti-HNA; antineutrophil antibodies; incidence; neonatal alloimmune neutropenia; serologic diagnosis