فهرست نشریات علمی دسترسی آزاد ایران

Background and Objectives: The unexpected presence of antibodies is a crucial concern for the safety of blood transfusions and can complicate compatibility testing, possibly delaying the identification of a suitable blood unit. This retrospective study aimed to assess the prevalence of unexpected antibodies and their association with patient characteristics within the general population in Taif City, Saudi Arabia.    Methods: Antibody screening was performed on 21,183 patients from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2023. Patient demographics, results of unexpected antibody identification, and blood groups were collected from medical records. Chi-square tests were used to evaluate the associations between unexpected antibodies and various factors.   Results: Of 21,183 patients screened, 105 (0.50%) had positive results. Among those, 7 (6.7%) had autoantibodies and 98 (93.3%) had alloantibodies in their plasma. The majority of patients were female (94, 89.5%), with only 11 (10.5%) being male. The most common antibody was anti-E, in 25 (23.8%) patients, followed by anti-K, anti-c, and anti-M at 19 (18.1%), 9 (8.6%), and 8 (7.6%) patients, respectively. Multiple antibodies (anti-E and anti- N) were detected in one patient (1%). Associations were identified between the presence of the unexpected antibodies and gender, history of pregnancy, history of transfusion, and Rh phenotype (P<0.001).    Conclusion: In our study, the frequency of unexpected antibodies was 0.50%. We suggest implementing a mandatory extended phenotyping policy (Rh and Kell) for patients who need multiple transfusions.