Erythrocyte antigen kel1 in a new form of disease history

The accumulated scientific data on the clinical significance of phenotyping antigens of the Kell blood group system were studied. The Elibrary and Pubmed libraries were searched for articles using the keywords “Kell” and “transfusion”, and the validity of the requirement to determine the antigen of the Kell blood group system by current regulations was assessed.The purpose of the determination of the K antigen (KEL1) is practically not very clear. Theoretically, in a K-positive patient, zygosity should be determined by determining the k antigen (KEL2). With the KK phenotype, there is a risk of alloimmunization with the k antigen. However, it is extremely difficult to find a KK-positive donor compatible with ABO and RhD phenotypes. In fact, the risk of alloimmunization with the KEL2 antigen of a KK-positive recipient is considered acceptable and individual donor selection can be made for recipients of multiple transfusions or alloimmunized individuals.In the Elibrary library, 62 publications were found for the term “Kell”. None of them described a patient with the KK phenotype, let alone alloimmunization with the k antigen.Anti-k is rare, even in large laboratories 1 case is detected within several years of observation. The last transfusion hemolytic reaction caused by immunization to KEL2 was described in 1969.Conclusion. Russian regulations require the transfusion of RBCs that are compatible for the KEL1 antigen, but there is no definition of such “compatibility”. World and domestic historical experience testify to the possibility of transfusion to K-positive recipients, both K-positive and K-negative erythrocytes. If there are no K-positive donor erythrocytes in the hospital, the mandatory determination of the KEL1 antigen in potential recipients of donor blood can be excluded.