The pattern of Rh phenotype among voluntary blood donors – A single-center observation from North India

Background: Human blood is precious and its availability and requirement are important elements of a comprehensive health-care delivery. Healthy voluntary donors are key sources to maintain the supply of human blood, and due care is warranted to ensure that the right blood reaches the right patient. Blood donor screening is standard practice, and the knowledge of ABO and Rh phenotype study is important. Prevalence and pattern of Rh phenotypes in a particular area may be important for various functioning of any blood bank. Materials and Method: Various centers frequently showcase prevalence pattern of Rh phenotype at a specified centre or region. A similar study was undertaken from collected data of voluntary blood donors in our tertiary care center. Results: Out of 2000 donor samples, B, A, O, and AB were in the decreasing order of frequency with 33.3%, 29.6%, 25.7%, and 11.4%, respectively. The most common Rh antigens observed were e (97.1%), followed by D (93.8%), C (88.45%), c (51.05%), and E (18.45%). Out of eight phenotypes in D-positive donors, R1R1 (DCCee), R1r (DCcee), and R1R2 (DCcEe) were most frequently observed. In D-negative donors, rr (ddccee), r'r (ddCcee), and r'r' (CCddee) were the most common. Conclusion: The Rh phenotype pattern in our centre had diverse pattern and knowledge of this would guide further studies.