What are the symptoms and manifestations of ABO hemolytic disease in newborns?

Neonatal ABO hemolytic disease is primarily a condition caused by blood type incompatibility between a mother and her child. It belongs to the category of isoimmune hemolytic diseases, and its symptoms and manifestations mainly include jaundice, anemia, and hepatosplenomegaly. Details are as follows:

1. Jaundice: When a neonate experiences ABO hemolytic disease, increased destruction of red blood cells leads to an elevation of bilirubin in the blood, causing jaundice. This manifests as yellowing of the skin on the face, trunk, sclera, palms, and soles, as well as darkened urine.

2. Anemia: Blood type incompatibility between the mother and neonate triggers isoimmune hemolysis, resulting in insufficient blood supply to the neonate and causing anemia. The main manifestations of anemia include pale complexion, weak sucking ability, poor responsiveness, accelerated respiration and heart rate. In cases of severe anemia, heart failure may also accompany.

3. Hepatosplenomegaly: When neonatal ABO hemolytic disease occurs, the liver and spleen enlarge due to compensatory hyperplasia of bone marrow and extramedullary hematopoietic tissue, leading to varying degrees of hepatosplenomegaly.

Apart from the aforementioned symptoms, there may also be edema, and in severe cases, bilirubin encephalopathy may occur. When these symptoms appear, it is crucial to promptly take the neonate to the hospital for examination and treatment by doctors to avoid life-threatening situations.