Blood draw
Blood Group and Rhesus Factor
ABO blood group and Rhesus(D).
€ 78,00
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Blood count and blood group · Blood
ABO blood group
Determines whether you have blood group A, B, AB or O; an inherited trait that matters mainly for a blood transfusion.
At a glance
- Measured in blood
- In 1 test panel
- No special preparation
Explanation
ABO blood group: what is measured?
The ABO blood group is determined by sugar structures on the outside of the red blood cells. If you have one structure, you have blood group A; if you have the other, blood group B; if you have both, AB; if both are missing, O. You naturally have antibodies against the structures you do not have yourself: with blood group A against B, with B against A, with O against A and B, and with AB against neither. Your blood group is inherited and does not change during your life.
What can it detect?
- Your ABO blood group: A, B, AB or O
Result
What does the result mean?
What the result tells you
The result is a blood group: A, B, AB or O. None of these blood groups is healthier or abnormal; it is an inherited trait, just like eye color. Blood group O means that the A and B structures are missing, not that something is wrong. The blood group matters mainly if you receive blood: blood with a structure you do not have yourself is broken down immediately by your own antibodies, which can cause a serious reaction. The ABO blood group is usually given together with the Rhesus D blood group, for example 'A positive'; 'positive' or 'negative' then refers to Rhesus D. Sometimes the laboratory cannot determine the blood group clearly, for example with a rare weak variant of A or B or shortly after a blood transfusion; the result is then not given or given as unclear.
After an abnormal result
No follow-up is needed; the blood group is not a disease or risk factor. If the result is unclear, the test can be repeated.
Reliability
How reliable is the test?
An ABO test in the laboratory is reliable, and a blood group once determined does not change. For a blood transfusion, the blood group is always tested again within the hospital's own care process, and in every pregnancy in the national blood test at around 12 weeks. This result is therefore informative, but does not replace those tests.
What can affect the result?
- After a blood transfusion or a stem cell or bone marrow transplant, the measured blood group may differ temporarily or permanently from the blood group you were born with.
- Rare weak variants of A or B can give an unclear or abnormal result.
- The test says nothing about the many other blood group systems or about antibodies against other blood groups, which can also matter in a pregnancy or transfusion.
Who it is for
Who is the test useful for?
Useful for
Useful for anyone who wants to know their blood group out of curiosity or for their own records. Medically, knowing your blood group in advance has little consequence: in a pregnancy and for a transfusion, the blood group is always tested again, and blood donors get their blood group from Sanquin.
How common is it?
According to Sanquin, about 45 percent of people in the Netherlands have blood group O, 43 percent blood group A, 9 percent blood group B and 3 percent blood group AB. The distribution differs by ancestry.
Sanquin
Drawbacks and risks
- The result may give the impression that a blood group test in the hospital or by the midwife is unnecessary; that is not the case, it is always done again.
- Diet or lifestyle advice based on blood group (such as a 'blood type diet') is not scientifically supported.
Get tested
ABO blood group: test panels
ABO blood group is part of these test panels. You order online and have your blood drawn at a collection point or collect the sample at home.
Evidence
Sources
This explanation is based on Dutch guidelines and independent information. It is general information, not a diagnosis. Discuss an abnormal result with your GP.
More about risks and resultsMore explanations
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- Hemoglobin (Hb)
- Hemoglobin electrophoresis
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- MCH
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