Prevention of Rh-haemolytic Disease: Results of the Liverpool “Low-risk” Clinical Trial
Br Med J 1971; 2 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.2.5762.610 (Published 12 June 1971) Cite this as: Br Med J 1971;2:610
- J. C. Woodrow,
- C. A. Clarke,
- R. B. McConnell,
- Shona H. Towers,
- W. T. A. Donohoe
Abstract
A clinical trial is reported in which Rh-negative primiparae, just delivered of an Rh-positive ABO-compatible infant and in whom fetal cell counts after delivery suggested less than 0·2 ml of circulating fetal blood, were treated with about 200 μg of anti-D gammaglobulin. Three (0·36%) out of 844 women thus treated developed anti-D in the subsequent six months; this is 10% of the incidence in untreated controls. Three (1·8%) out of 171 treated mothers had anti-D at the end of the second Rh-positive pregnancy, and this is 18% of the incidence in controls.
Possible reasons for the occasional failure of the treatment are discussed and the results of this trial are compared with those of a previous trial in which 1,000 μg or more of anti-D was given to a different group of mothers. The combined results of the two trials lead to the conclusion that the passive administration of anti-D gammaglobulin after delivery affords in this population of Rh-negative women a 95% protection rate in the postdelivery period and an 89% protection rate by the end of the subsequent pregnancy.