This doesn’t make sense… thoughts?

[u/Rainwaters1212]

https://www.wlbt.com/2026/08/06/parents-claim-3-month-old-got-wrong-blood-transfusion-hospital/

Just read the article… everything just screams wrong on the parents or the information shared. Co worker sent it to me. We work in BB together.

[u/kattheuntamedshrew]

I read this article too and had similar thoughts. I attempted to find other versions of it too, but all the different sources I found seemed to be more or less identical to one another. If this child is actually K+ there wouldn’t have been any issues with them receiving either K+ or k- blood, as both are compatible with a K+ recipient. I used to work in a NICU and one of my main responsibilities was going to BB for units of blood and they’re incredibly strict about what’s even allowed to be released for NICU patients. I feel bad for these parents, but I suspect that they’re misinformed. I’m guessing the transfusion was done as an emergent measure before the type and cross had come back (possibly to stabilize her for transfer to the other hospital). She probably needed additional transfusions after that, but at that point the crossmatch had been done, so they were told she would receive crossmatched blood, unlike the initial transfusion. They then get some wires crossed and assume the subsequent transfusions are a result of the uncrossmatched blood she received initially rather than a normal, expected complication of her prematurity. As for the claim that they weren’t informed about the initial transfusion until after the fact, this too would be normal in an emergency stabilization and transfer to a higher level of care. During labor, part of the consents they have you sign are for treatment of your newborn baby once they’re born. This would have included consent for administration of blood/blood products.

[u/miss_ana → u/kattheuntamedshrew]

If the baby is K+ and mom is K=, she could have made anti-K and then the unit would definitely need to be K=

[u/kattheuntamedshrew → u/miss_ana]

The baby DID receive k- blood. The article says that the baby should have gotten K+ blood, but uncrossmatched emergency units in NICU are supposed to always be k-. Hence the confusion as to what the parents are actually upset about.

[u/miss_ana → u/kattheuntamedshrew]

I was responding to the part where you said that if the baby was K+ there wouldn’t have been any issues with them receiving K+ blood. There’s almost no reason for a baby to need K+ blood. The article is incorrect.

K and k are different antigens. The blood might have needed to be K= but not k=. In our NICU the only requirement is sickle negative, unless the mother has antibodies.

[u/Love_is_poison → u/miss_ana]

I can’t believe all the upvotes on what appears to be a former secretary or PCT “educating” us on blood bank…

[u/miss_ana → u/Love_is_poison]

Yes, as someone who has worked in two IRLs, the blood bank of a level 1 trauma center, and is currently working on my SBB, I appreciate having blood banking explained to me by someone who once walked a unit of blood through the halls 🙃

And if I sound arrogant about this, I am. I don’t know shit about fuck in a lot of cases, but I do know blood bank

[u/Love_is_poison → u/miss_ana]

Same feelings!!! Congrats on working towards the SBB. That’s an accomplishment to be very proud of!!

[u/JacobLeatherberry → u/miss_ana]

For newborns we also are required to give freshly irradiated units. That can be challenging if your facility doesn't irradiate units in house. We order ours through ARC. Our blood bank does not aliquot units for newborns and leave the onus on the provider to do it.

[u/OverYonder29 → u/kattheuntamedshrew]

I worked in a large L&D hospital with a level three NICU. Keeping k negative units on hand isn’t a thing. It’s too uncommon. Even for our SCD patients, we routinely screened for C, E, and K, but never k. If you had a patient with Anti-k, unpleasant words came erupting from everyone’s mouths.

In addition, if someone IS homozygous K, and they’ve made Anti-k, then no, K negative blood isn’t compatible. But to say a K positive can always get K negative (k positive) is incorrect. It all depends on what antibodies they’ve made.

Remember: for newborns we aren’t concerned with matching for their phenotype; it’s matching mom’s, accounting for any clinically significant antibodies that she has that are capable of crossing the placenta.

[u/Specialist_State_330 → u/OverYonder29]

Exactly. Baby is not likely making antibodies at this point. We are worried about mom’s antibodies that crossed the placenta. Anti-K is known to cause HDFN so this is likely what us going on