Underreporting of mortality from RhD haemolytic disease in Scotland and its implications: retrospective review

Abstract

Clarke et al surveyed the decline in RhD haemolytic disease in England and Wales from 1977–92 by reviewing the statistics of the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys; during that time deaths attributable to RhD haemolytic disease had fallen from 18.4 to 1.3 per 100 000 live births.1 We surveyed RhD alloimmunisation in mothers resident in Scotland between 1987 and 91 and confirmed that fetal loss from RhD haemolytic disease was greater than that listed by the General Register Office in Scotland. Underreporting has serious implications for recognising, understanding, and preventing this potentially lethal disease. Data on deaths attributable to RhD haemolytic disease during 1987–91 were obtained from: death certificates; details of pregnancies in Scottish residents who had antibody to RhD antigen and were managed at …