What blood type is universal blood?

There are many types of blood in the human body. The more common blood types are A, B, AB, O, etc. According to surveys, the number of people with AB blood type is very small. People with this blood type are born very special because there is no agglutinin in their blood. In an emergency, AB blood type can accept any blood, but it is also easy to have some transfusion reactions. So what blood type is universal blood?

First, what blood type is universal blood? Blood type is a genetic marker of humans, often called blood type antigen on the surface of blood cells. There are hundreds of blood type antigens on red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Theoretically, except for identical twins, almost no two people have the same blood type. ABO and Rh blood types are two blood type systems that are closely related to human blood transfusion. The red blood cell ABO blood type system refers to the different antigen substances carried by the red blood cells in the blood. There are four blood types: A, B, O and AB.

Second, it is understood that the classification principle of the ABO blood type system is to see whether there are A and B antigens on the red blood cells, that is, only A antigen is called A type; only B antigen is called B type; no A antigen or B antigen is called O type; the presence of both A antigen and B antigen is called AB type. There are no A or B antigens on O type red blood cells, so O type red blood cells can be transfused to A, B, or AB type patients when the major side matching is compatible, without being bound by the relative anti-A or anti-B antibodies in the recipient's serum. Therefore, the transfused O type red blood cells are not destroyed. For a long time, O type blood has been commonly referred to as the "universal blood type". Theoretically, type O blood cells can be transfused to people with the other three blood types. However, many people overlook another problem, that is, type O plasma contains anti-A and anti-B antibodies, which can undergo an immune reaction with type A, B, and AB red blood cells, shortening their lifespan or destroying them, and is a contraindication for blood transfusion. Therefore, it is wrong to call type O whole blood "universal blood."

What blood type is universal blood? If a large amount of O-type blood is transfused and the concentration of anti-A and anti-B antibodies in the serum is very high, serious transfusion reactions can also occur. As the amount of heterotypic blood transfusion increases, this transfusion contraindication phenomenon gradually becomes more serious. In severe cases, the red blood cells of the recipient are destroyed, leading to hemolytic transfusion reactions. Therefore, in places with better medical conditions, component blood transfusion should be vigorously promoted, heterotypic blood transfusion should no longer be used, and the concept of "universal blood" should be corrected in a timely manner. At present, when hospitals transfuse blood to patients, they must in principle transfuse the same type of blood, and they must also perform cross-matching tests to ensure that no coagulation occurs before transfusion can be given. Therefore, under normal circumstances, transfusion of the same type of blood is the most ideal and safest method. Therefore, citizens are encouraged to actively donate blood free of charge to ensure the normal blood inventory and avoid accidents caused by insufficient blood supply.