Inheritance of ABO Blood Group and Rhesus Factor and It Implication in Genetic Counselling and Public Health Education

Introduction: The discovery of the ABO Blood Group and rhesus factor, over century ago, triggered countless enthusiasm. Before then, all blood had been presumed to be the matching, and the often tragic consequences of blood transfusions were not understood.

Objective: The objective of this article sought to explain Inheritance of ABO Blood Group and Rhesus factor which would contribute to knowledge and help in Genetic Counselling.

Methodology: This is a scoping review to explain Inheritance of ABO Blood Group and Rhesus factor. The LILACS-BIREME, SCIELO, PUBMED, ACADEMIA, SCIENCE DOMAIN databases, some textbooks and google scholar were accessed for the study. Scientific papers published in English were reviewed. A total of 35 reports published were identified and reviewed. Twenty five (25) publications meeting the inclusion criterion were selected for this review. Finally, an analysis was conducted and the papers were assessed in agreement with the study objectives.

Findings: Determining an individual’s blood group is important prior to blood transfusion and prior to the donation or receiving of a kidney transplant. Although blood group studies cannot be used to prove paternity, they can provide unequivocal evidence that a male is not the father of a particular child. Aside knowing your genotype before marriage, there is the need for one to know about Rhesus factor to prevent Rhesus factor incompatibility.

Conclusion: The discussion and knowledge generated on the ABO blood group and the Rhesus factor could be used in genetic counselling and public health education to prevent transfusion reaction and Rhesus factor incompatibility.