Archive · 9 Aug 2025
Mumbai Newborn with Rare Blood Disorder Saved After Week-Long Wait
A baby in Mumbai was very sick with a rare blood problem called HDN.
This meant the baby's blood cells were being attacked.
The only way to help was to give the baby new blood through a special procedure.
Getting the right type of blood took a week because not all hospitals keep this type of blood.
Doctors said the baby could have had serious brain damage if they waited any longer.
Experts explained that the blood type the baby needed is easy to get quickly, and could have been found in just a few hours.
The baby ultimately received the necessary blood from another hospital.
A newborn with Hemolytic Disease of the Newborn (HDN) at KEM Hospital in Mumbai received life-saving O Positive whole blood.
The infant, eight days old, required an exchange transfusion due to HDN, a condition where the mother's antibodies attack the baby's red blood cells.
The delay in receiving whole blood highlighted the challenges in Mumbai's public hospitals, specifically the limited availability of fresh whole blood.
Doctors warned that further delays could have caused irreversible brain damage and permanent mental disability.
O Positive blood is a universal donor type and can be sourced within hours, as indicated by a blood center expert.
- Who
- A newborn with HDN and medical professionals.
- What
- An eight-day-old newborn with HDN received O Positive whole blood.
- When
- After a week-long wait.
- Where
- KEM Hospital, Mumbai.
- Why
- To treat HDN, a condition causing the mother's antibodies to attack the baby's red blood cells.
Hospital's Actions
Expert Critique
Response to Delay
Hospital's Actions
Doctors at KEM Hospital treated the infant and tried to obtain whole blood.
Expert Critique
Some experts suggest there might have been miscommunication between the doctors and the parents. Also, they say that the hospital blood bank is responsible for arranging donors in these critical cases.
- Hospital
- KEM Hospital, Mumbai
- Condition
- Hemolytic Disease of the Newborn (HDN)
- Blood Type Received
- O Positive
- Age of Infant
- Eight days old
- Treatment
- Exchange transfusion
- Blood Source
- Shatabdi BDBA Hospital, Kandivali