|MadSci Network: Neuroscience|
It appears that the Rh factor can have adverse effect on brain function. This was a learning experience for me as well. I was not able to find the detailed cellular response of the mechanisms to the cause why the neurons malfunction but there is correlative evidence with many dysfunctions of brain function as a result of Rh incompatibility. So if brain function is altered then that could very well lead to mental retardation. Below I have compiled information from various www sites and sources. It is a bit long but at least it will provide a good overview of the Rh problem and cause and various developmental problems as a result of the incompatibility. (Where the ** are located is the next passage of my annotation to the information provided. At the very bottom is a listing of primary medical literature on Rh factor and mental disorders). First I think it would be best to describe what happens when a mother has a problem with Rh during pregnancy. The following information was obtained from: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Woods/2924/rh.html ˇ°How is hemolytic disease prevented? Hemolytic disease can for the most part be prevented if the Rh- mother has not already made antibodies against the Rh factor from an earlier pregnancy or blood transfusion. RhoGam is a blood product that can prevent sensitization of an Rh- mother. It suppresses her ability to respond to Rh+ red cells. RhoGam is not helpful if the mother is already sensitized. Interesting to note, midwives and home-birth doctors, who delay clamping the cord until the blood has stopped pulsating, report an almost zero incidence of Rh problems. A blood test, called an antibody screen, can show if an Rh- woman has developed antibodies to Rh+ blood. Once a woman develops antibodies, RhoGam treatment does not help. An Rh sensitized mother can be checked during her pregnancy to see if the baby is developing hemolytic disease. Delivery may be followed by a type of transfusion for the baby that will replace the diseased blood cells with healthy blood. Prior to RhoGam, somewhere between 10 to 16 percent of Rh- women became sensitized to their baby's blood. Traditionally, RhoGam is given within 72 hours of birth. This is a recommendation which arose from the fact that the researchers developing the protocols for giving RhoGam postpartum used the 72 hour period because of the logistics of drawing blood from volunteers who were newly delivered and usually discharged by 72 hours. Since they had such a high success rate with this particular protocol, this 72-hour limit became sacred. However, immunologists know that immune response is not initiated until fetal cells are identified by the mother's spleen. This process can take weeks. Therefore, you can go past the 72 hours before administrating the RhoGam vaccine. RhoGam is developed by injecting human volunteer donors (Rh-) with the positive Rh factor, then drawing their blood once antibodies have been formed. This blood is concentrated into a serum for injection. RhoGam is a human-blood product and therefore, despite all government reassurances, may contain the AIDS virus. RhoGam reduces, but does not eliminate the possibility of Rh sensitization. RhoGam joins a long list of medical interventions that once were considered to be beyond question but now are suspect. RhoGam, like immunizations and silver nitrate in the eyes of newborns, has been a form of Holy Water in the Religion of Modern Medicine. Since 2 percent of Rh- women still become sensitized even with RhoGam, researchers, seeking to better the percentage, began to give RhoGam at 28 weeks of pregnancy. This is a relatively new procedure. With prenatal RhoGam, the future siblings are the ones who may benefit from the treatment, rather than the baby who is subjected to the risk. Tests on babies whose mothers were given RhoGam prenatally imply that the immunoglobulin reaches the baby in measurable amounts. No one knows what the effect might be on an Rh- female baby who later gives birth to Rh+ babies. Because the baby's blood type is not ordinarily known during pregnancy, the standard of care among United States obstetricians has come to be that all babies of Rh- mothers, regardless of their blood type, are exposed to RhoGam. This means that approximately 35 percent of babies are needlessly exposed to RhoGam. Another group of babies needlessly exposed are those who will be their mother's last child. It is only future pregnancies that are affected by the mixing of blood between Rh- mothers and Rh+ babies. A part that may cause problems, in addition to the AIDS question, is the preservative thimerosol, which is a mercury derivative. Mercury crosses the placental barrier and, within minutes of maternal exposure, the unborn baby receives 30 times the concentration level of the mother. The use of RhoGam during pregnancy may be dangerous to the baby. Some mothers after receiving prenatal RhoGam have had their babies die within a week of having the vaccine.ˇ± ** So that information is scary enough. What else I was able to dig up is that some people feel that cerebral palsy might be caused by Rh blood-type incompatibility. If you want to more about cerebral palsy. I found this information at: http://www.svayam.com/production/health/mentalretardation.asp and more information at: http://www.encyclopedia.com/articles/08337Prevention.html Cerebral palsy is a term used to describe a group of chronic conditions affecting body movement and muscle coordination. It is caused by damage to one or more specific areas of the brain, usually occurring during fetal development; before, during or shortly following birth; or during infancy. "Cerebral" refers to the brain and "palsy" to muscle weakness/poor control. Cerebral palsy itself is not progressive (i.e., it does not get worse); however,, secondary conditions can develop which may get better over time, get worse, or remain the same. Cerebral palsy is not communicable. It is not a disease and should never be referred to as such. Although cerebral palsy is not "curable" in the accepted sense, training and therapy can help improve function. *** It appears that agglutinins that are produced by the mother in the case of a Rh incompatibility and that these can have an adverse reaction with a developing embryo as pointed out at the following www site: http://www.ucpla.com/learn/#causes ˇ°serious or fatal reaction. The same type of immune reaction occurs in the blood of an Rh-negative mother who is carrying an Rh-positive fetus. (The probability of this situation occurring is high if the father is Rh positive.) Some of the infant's blood may enter the maternal circulation, causing the formation of agglutinins against the fetal red blood cells. The first baby is usually not harmed. But, if the mother's agglutinins pass into the circulation of subsequent fetuses, they may destroy the fetal red blood cells, causing the severe hemolytic disease of newborns known as erythroblastosis fetalis.ˇ± ** In addition it has been noted that deafness can be caused by Rh factors- - http://dana.ucc.nau.edu/~jrd8/WebWizard/sites.html Causes of Deafness - This site covers five causes of deafness. It includes rubella, heredity, premature birth, complications of Rh factor, and meningitis. Underneath each of the causes, there is a list of facts related to the cause. A great resource for determining the cause of deafness. http://www.svayam.com/production/health/mentalretardation.asp Other Reasons: Mother and child incompatibility on Rh factor, neonatal disorder and deficiency of Glucose http://www.ucpla.com/learn/#causes What are the causes? A large number of factors injuring the developing brain may produce cerebral palsy. One important cause is an insufficient amount of oxygen reaching the fetal or newborn brain. Premature separation of the placenta from the wall of the uterus, awkward birth position of the baby, labor that is too long or too abrupt, or interference with circulation in the umbilical cord can interrupt oxygen supply. Premature birth, low birth weight, Rh or A-B-O blood-type incompatibility between mother and infant, infection of the mother with German measles or other virus diseases in early pregnancy, and micro-organisms that attack the infant's central nervous system also are risk factors for cerebral palsy.ˇ± ***** Listing of Primary Literature on Rh factor and mental disorders 1. Dev Med Child Neurol 1974 Oct;16(5):592-611 A follow-up study of survivors of Rh-haemolytic disease. Walker W, Ellis MI, Ellis E, Curry A, Savage RD, Sawyer R. 2. Arch Fr Pediatr 1967 Jun-Jul;24(6):687-91. Intellectual predictions of 71 children between the ages of 2 and 13 years afflicted at birth with non- complicated Rh hemolytic disease. [Article in French] Boeswillwald M, Lepage F, Larnaud. 3. Dis Nerv Syst 1976 Oct;37(10):581-3. ABO-RH blood groups and psychiatric diagnosis: a critical review. Flemenbaum A, Larson JW. The authors studied 312 consecutive admissions to a psychiatric service for a relationship of the ABO - Rh blood groups with psychiatric diagnosis. Even though the results were significant, showing an increase of A blood group with M.D.D. and O group with Sch, the authors observe that the general patient population was skewed and significantly different from the general population of the area. This same observation was made for most of the previous studies that have reported significant correlations between various blood groups and different psychiatric diagnosis. Because of this, the conclusion of the present study is that at the present time positive associational findings of blood groups with psychiatric diagnosis are probably related to a skewed and stratified patient population sample. 4. Folia Med Cracov 1967;9(1):145-65. Immunologic, pneumoencephalographic and electroencephalographic studies in children with mental disorders after neonatal hemolytic disease. [Article in Polish] Kwiatkowska E. 5. Wien Klin Wochenschr 1970 Jul 3;82(27):506-7. Brain damage in the infant due to Rh-incompatibility. [Article in German] Asperger H. 6. Wien Med Wochenschr 1970 Apr 11;120(15):251-3. Brain damage from blood group incompatibility. [Article in German] Rett A. 7. Except Child 1967 Sep;34(1):5-12. Rh factor and deafness: the problem, its psychological, physical, and educational manifestations. Vernon M. Hope this helps. All the best, Robin Cooper
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