2024-01-30 08:42:00
You certainly know the blood groups A, AB, B, O, etc. But, have you ever heard of the groups Bombay, Rhésus null or even Duffy null? In total, there are 390 blood groups, of which 250 are considered rare. This term is used when fewer than four people out of 1,000 in the population have it. For them, there are no other compatible blood groups for performing a transfusion.
The health newsletter
Every Tuesday at 9:30 a.m.
Receive our selection of articles from our Health section as well as the rankings of hospitals and clinics, special files, advice and tips…
Merci !
Your registration has been taken into account with the email address:
To discover all our other newsletters, go here: MyAccount
By registering, you accept the general conditions of use and our confidentiality policy.
Some blood types are extremely rare. For example, one person in 1 million in Europe belongs to the Bombay group and Rhesus zero affects around fifty individuals worldwide. From Monday January 29 until February 4, 2024, the French Blood Establishment (EFS) is launching the third edition of rare blood awareness week.
Geographic disparities
In France, approximately 700,000 to 1 million people have a rare blood group. “It is estimated that there are nearly 1 million carriers of a rare blood group in France, and only 10% know it. There is therefore a real challenge in making this better known in order to mobilize the entire French population, in all its diversity! » underlines Professor Jacques Chiaroni, director of EFS Paca-Corse.
But some people are particularly concerned. Specifically, these are those originating from sub-Saharan Africa, the Drom (Martinique, Guadeloupe, Guyana) or the Indian Ocean (Reunion, Mayotte). “There is in fact a geography of blood groups: certain people may have a blood group that is common in a particular geographic area, but less common, or even rare, within the country in which they live. For example, negative rhesus, very common in Europe, is almost non-existent on the Asian continent,” adds the EFS in its press release.
A risk of imbalance
Why do these people have to donate blood? “Whether following chemotherapy, hemorrhage caused by a car accident or even as part of treatment for a genetic disease, when a transfusion must be carried out, a compatible blood product must be found. with the patient’s blood, that is to say as close as possible to his blood characteristics. This compatibility is essential for the transfusion to be effective and to avoid serious complications,” summarizes the French Blood Establishment.
The frequency of these blood groups in the general population is low enough to create an imbalance between the number of donors and the needs of patients. So, to be able to properly treat these patients, it is essential to collect blood from people with similar blood characteristics. In total, 1 million people are treated each year thanks to blood donations. Every day, 10,000 donations are needed.
1706640899
#urgent #call #donations #rare #blood #groups