Blood Type, Rh Factor, and Antibody Screening
Commonly at your first prenatal check up, your obstetrician will check your blood type to see whether it is O, A, B, or AB. They will also check the Rh factor whether it is Rh-negative. If you are Rh-negative they will give you a shot of Rh immune globulin at least once during the pregnancy and another one after labor if your baby turns out to be Rh-positive. If the baby’s father is also Rh-negative, your baby will be Rh-negative too, so you will not need the shot.
Pregnancy Blood Test
Complete Blood Count
The function of complete blood count is to see whether you have anemia where the amount of hemoglobin in your red blood cells is too little. Anemia may likely be the result of Iron deficiency. If you are proven Iron deficient, your practitioner will recommend you to take Iron supplements and consume more Iron-rich foods, such as lean meat.
White blood cells and the platelets will also be counted in this pregnancy blood test. An elevated number of white blood cells could indicate an infection.
Rubella (German Measles) Immunity
This pregnancy blood test, called a rubella titer, checks antibodies’ level to the rubella virus in your blood to see whether you are immune or not.
Rubella virus can cause a miscarriage, preterm birth, or stillbirth, as well as a variety of serious birth defects during pregnancy. So if you are not immune, it is very important to avoid anyone who has the infection and to not travel to foreign countries wheer the disease is still prevalent.
Hepatitis B Testing
This pregnancy blood test will reveal whether you are a hepatitis B carrier. Many women with Hepatitis B may never realize that they’re passing this liver disease to their baby during labor or after birth since they have no symptoms.
If you are proven Hepatitis B, your baby will be protected by an injection of Hepatitis B immune globulin as well as his first shot of the hep B vaccine within 12 hours of birth. The second shot will be given at 1 or 2 months and the third at 6 months.
Syphilis Screening
Eventhough this Sexual Transmitted Infection (STI) is relatively rare today, you still need to test it because if you have syphilis and don’t treat it, serious problem could be developed o your baby and yourself. If your blood test is positive, you’ll be given antibiotics to treat the infection.
HIV Testing
It is highly recommended for pregnant women to be tested for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), the virus that causes AIDS. If you are positive HIV, you and your baby can get treatment that will help maintain your own health and reduce the chance of your baby to be infected by the virus as well.
