Blood group test is a quick but necessary diagnostic test that determines your blood type based on the ABO and Rh systems. The test is helpful in determining your blood transfusion, organ transplant, and pregnancy-linked treatment compatibility. Your blood group plays a crucial role in emergency response and genetic inheritance and determining the risk of disease.
The test also protects against incompatibility reactions to blood transfusions and warns doctors during surgeries. Whether O positive blood group, A negative blood group, AB type, or whatever, your blood type will determine all types of healthcare. It is quick, cheap, and available in clinics and even at-home test kits.
What is a Blood Group Test?
A blood type or blood group test is conducted to identify what antigens and antibodies are present in the blood. Two main elements of the test are the ABO blood group system and Rh factor test. The ABO system divides blood into four groups depending on whether the A and B antigens are present or absent on red cells. The Rh system, however, shows whether or not the Rh (D) antigen is present ( ) or absent (−), which would make your blood positive or negative.
Blood grouping is crucial to the prevention of safe blood donation, medical procedures, and care in pregnancy as well as understanding blood group and genetics. It can be performed in a hospital, diagnostic center, or at home using the use of test kits.
Why is the Blood Group Test Done?
Testing for blood group is required for the majority of health and medical needs. Most common is the requirement of matching blood compatibility in transfusion. Receiving blood that is incompatible with your blood group can trigger immunity responses, leading to severe health issues. Hence, knowing your own personal blood group is lifesaving during emergency conditions and while undergoing surgery.
If the mother is Rh-negative and the father is Rh-positive during pregnancy, the baby might be born with Rh-positive blood. This will make the immune system of the mother destroy the baby's red blood cells. Prevenient treatment to safeguard the child can be accomplished if it is identified early through blood grouping.
How to Prepare for a Blood Group Test?
There's little or no preparation needed before having a blood group test. It's a simple and routine blood test. You don't need to fast or abstain from taking water before this test, as compared to fasting blood tests.
But if the test is conducted in pre-surgical or in an extended diagnostic panel, then comply with your physician's regular directions. If you are on anticoagulant therapy or have bleeding tendencies, alert your physician in advance to avoid blood sample acquisition problems.
Blood Group Test Procedure
The answer to how to find your blood group is to take the blood group test. The test is started with a common venipuncture. The site is cleaned by a medical professional, most commonly the inside of the elbow or on the tip of a finger, and then punctured with a sterile lancet or needle for a sample of blood. A few millilitres in a tube are drawn for laboratory testing. One drop will be enough to do at home.
Within a laboratory, the sample is combined with reagents, anti-A, anti-B, and anti-D (Rh). Reaction on a slide or on a microscope slide is found to indicate the absence of or presence of certain antigens.
What to Expect After the Blood Group Test
Once tested, you can return to normal activity straight away. You might possibly develop some mild bruising and tenderness at the point where the blood was drawn, but this should settle in a day or two. Applying gentle pressure and keeping the area clean will prevent bruising.
No dietary limitations or side effects follow taking the test. If you took an over-the-counter home test kit, it is a good idea to cross-reference the result with a lab test taken in a professional laboratory, particularly if the test will be utilized in medical treatment or government forms.
Interpretation of ABO and Rh Blood Group Test Results
The blood group test report of your ABO and Rh blood group will be presented as your blood type in the following ABO and Rh factor format, i.e., A , B−, AB , or O−. The results both indicate your antigen profile and if your blood contains the Rh protein or not.
When you are Rh-negative and your spouse is Rh-positive, and during pregnancy, your physician may administer an Rh immunoglobulin injection to avoid any sort of complication.
For blood transfusion, crossmatching in blood testing can also be conducted in addition to blood typing test so that donor and recipient blood are completely compatible with each other. This is particularly applicable in the case of rare blood groups or on a regular basis of transfusions.
Occasional irregular results occasionally can occur unless due to occasional antigen deficiency, mixed-field reaction, or laboratory error. If this is the case, a retest can be run for interpretation.
Diseases Diagnosed with Blood Group Test
Although the primary function of a blood group test is to type blood, it is used in the assistance of the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. It is utilized:
- Hemolytic disease of the newborn (in Rh incompatibility)
- Safety of blood component transfusion, particularly in surgery or trauma
- Compatibility of organ and bone marrow transplants
- Autoimmune hemolytic anemia, as part of screening antibodies
- Genetic diseases carried by traits in blood
Although it will not diagnose disease on its own, it will most commonly be done in combination with other hematology tests to create a whole clinical picture.
Blood Group Test Vs Rheumatology Tests
Blood group and rheumatology tests are for completely different reasons but are prescribed together to provide complete tests. Blood group test is utilized to look for antigens and blood transfusion compatibility or genetics. Rheumatology tests, however, look for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, or vasculitis.
Your blood group doesn't have anything to do with the presence of a rheumatic disease, although genetic predispositions to susceptibility are investigated in some studies. Both tests, if done simultaneously, yield different pieces of information about the health status of the patient.
Cost of Blood Group Test in Pakistan
The blood group test price in Pakistan is mostly within affordable reach. It is mostly between PKR 300 and PKR 800 based on the city, the diagnostic lab, and whether or not there is another test (such as crossmatching) to be performed.
Home test kits can also be bought online and from pharmacies at a price ranging from PKR 800 to PKR 1,500. These are for self-test although not in lieu of certified laboratory reports if carried out for official or medical purposes.
Book lab tests from the best-certified labs in Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, and all major cities of Pakistan through InstaCare, and get a discount of up to 35%. For assistance, call our helpline at 03171777509 to find the right lab test for your health needs.
