March 10, 2021 Webinar - Genomics in Sickle Cell Disease

Wednesday, March 10, 2021 / 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM EST

Topic: Genotyping for Improved Outcomes in Chronic Transfusion Sickle Cell Patient

Speaker:

Ghazala Nathu, MD, MS, PhD, FACB

Abstract: 
Blood transfusions are often an important component of medical care for many patients. Certain patients afflicted with blood disorders or certain chronic illnesses may require routine blood transfusions to maintain health. However, there are risks and side effects to blood transfusions. Every blood transfusion requires pre-transfusion testing to ascertain antigen and antibody compatibility between donor and recipient blood cells in order to prevent hemolytic transfusion reactions. The conventional method of routine serological blood phenotyping has allowed for a lower risk of alloimmunization in chronically transfused patients however it can be expensive and sometimes ineffective. DNA-based molecular testing using microarrays is a newer technique that can be used to more effectively match and guide blood transfusion decisions, especially in chronically transfused patients. The molecular methods of blood group genotyping can be utilized in prenatal medicine to differentiate between weak D and partial D antigens. This allows for better clinical usage of Rh prophylaxis in patients and reduces risk of fetal hemorrhage and other complications. As such, this work explores the role of molecular blood typing techniques in reducing the risk of alloimmunization, the potential for identifying uncommon antigens in transplant cases, and decreasing unnecessary usage of Rh prophylaxis in prenatal medicine.

Objectives:

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