Rare blood donor program launched in Karnataka to support patients with uncommon blood types
Bangalore: In a significant move to address the blood requirements of patients with rare blood groups, the Rotary Bangalore TTK Blood Centre, part of Bangalore Medical Services Trust (BMST), launched a ‘Rare Blood Donor’ program on Tuesday. This initiative, in collaboration with the Karnataka State Blood Transfusion Council, was unveiled by Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao on National Voluntary Blood Donation Day.
The program aims to establish a ‘Rare Blood Donor’ registry, creating a database of voluntary donors with rare blood types and maintaining a repository of frozen red cell units of these uncommon groups. The initiative has the technical support of the National Institute of Immunohematology (NIIH) ICMR Mumbai, New York Blood Center in the U.S., and the International Society of Blood Transfusion (ISBT) in Amsterdam.
Patients with conditions like thalassemia and cancer, who require frequent transfusions, are at particular risk when they have rare blood types, as it is difficult to find precisely matched donors. Pregnant women with rare blood groups are also at a higher risk of complications such as miscarriages and haemolytic disease of the newborn (HDN), which can be fatal if not managed.
Dr. Latha Jagannathan, Medical Director and Managing Trustee of Rotary Bangalore TTK Blood Centre, highlighted that the program will provide training and raise awareness across Karnataka’s blood centers about rare blood groups. She explained that advanced blood group testing using both serology and molecular techniques will help identify rare blood types in patients and their families.
“Out of 500 individuals tested so far, we have identified 60 rare blood donors who have been enrolled in the registry. We will also identify other voluntary donors with rare blood types and share anonymized data with the International Rare Donor Panel,” Dr. Latha stated, noting that BMST’s center, along with the ICMR center in Mumbai, is the only one in India with such a registry.
Ankit Mathur, Additional Medical Director at BMST, explained that there are currently 45 identified blood group systems, with ABO and Rh (Rhesus factor) being the most common. However, rare blood groups, such as the Bombay (Oh) phenotype and Rh-D-/-D-, are present in fewer than one in 1,000 to one in 10,000 people, and can cause complications during transfusions or pregnancies.
The BMST’s Rotary Bangalore TTK Blood Centre is notable for being the only NGO in India with a standalone facility that includes a blood center, tissue bank, HLA lab, and stem cell collection. It is Karnataka’s largest regional blood transfusion center, collecting around 40,000 units of blood annually, with 35% of the donations provided free of charge, all sourced from voluntary donors.
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UP: Misled by GPS navigation, car falls into river from partially constructed bridge, 3 dead
Bareilly (UP), Nov 24: Three people died when their car fell into the Ramganga river from a partially constructed bridge here on Sunday, police said, adding that they suspect the driver was misled by its navigation system into taking the unsafe route.
The accident occurred around 10 am on the Khalpur-Dataganj road when the victims were travelling from Bareilly to Dataganj in the Badaun district, they said.
"Earlier this year, floods had caused the front portion of the bridge to collapse into the river, but this change had not been updated in the system," Circle Officer Ashutosh Shivam said.
The driver was using a navigation system and did not realise that the bridge was unsafe, driving the car off the damaged section, the police said.
There were no safety barriers or warning signs on the approach to the damaged bridge, leading to the fatal accident, Shivam said.
Upon receiving information, police teams from Faridpur, Bareilly and Dataganj police station rushed to the spot. They recovered the vehicle and the bodies from the river, Shivam added.
The circle officer said that bodies had been sent for post-mortem. Further investigation into the matter is underway.
— Bareilly Police (@bareillypolice) November 24, 2024
