Fetomaternal hemorrhage refers to the entry of fetal blood into the maternal circulation before or during delivery. Very small amount of fetal red cells are normally detectable in all pregnancies. Massive fetomaternal bleed is very rare and even rarer is the resultant severe anemia causing early neonatal death, despite an uneventful normal pregnancy until the end. Antenatal fetomaternal hemorrh...

Rhesus (Rh) haemolytic disease has been greatly reduced in incidence by the prophylactic programme with anti-D immunoglobulin, but it will not be eliminated. Even with careful documentation and close liaison between medical, nursing and laboratory personnel, there are occasional failures to administer anti-D to Rh-negative women at risk of sensitization following either delivery (Crowle, 1974) ...

Immune modulation at the fetomaternal interface is crucial to ensure that the fetal allograft is not rejected. In the present review, the focus is to describe basic functions of lymphocyte populations and how they may contribute to fetomaternal immune regulation, as well as determining what proportions and effector functions of these cells are reported to be present in placental tissues in huma...

Pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A 2 (PAPPA2) is a placental-enriched gene that is important for normal human placentation and defects in the gene can cause complications in pregnancy. Yet the exact expression pattern and role of PAPPA2 in the human fetomaternal interface are not clear. In this study, in situ hybridization (ISH) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) were employed to examine the spa...

Acceptance of the fetus expressing allogeneic paternal Ags by the mother is a physiologic model of transplantation tolerance. Various mechanisms contribute to fetal evasion from immune attack by maternal leukocytes. We have recently demonstrated that the inhibitory costimulatory molecule PDL1 plays a critical role in fetomaternal tolerance in that PDL1 blockade or deficiency resulted in decreas...

The postpartum dose of Rh immune globulin varies according to an individual laboratory estimation of fetal red blood cells in each mother's peripheral blood. In the United States, a four-step procedure determines the postpartum dose (number of vials of 300 micrograms; 1,500 international units) of Rh immune globulin (anti-D) for each RhD-negative mother who has delivered an RhD-positive newborn...

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to determine relative contributions of transplacental flux vs. fetal production for inositol and mannose in normal term pregnancies. STUDY DESIGN Seven term uncomplicated pregnancies undergoing cesarean section were infused with (13)C- and (2)H-labeled isotopes of glucose, inositol, and mannose until a steady state was achieved. Maternal and fetal concentra...

Background and Objective. Placenta previa (PP) is a potential risk factor for obstetric hemorrhage, which is a major cause of fetomaternal morbidity and mortality in developing countries. This study aimed to determine frequency, risk factors, and adverse fetomaternal outcomes of placenta previa in Northern Tanzania. Methodology. A retrospective cohort study was conducted using maternally-linked...