World’s first rare blood group found in an Indian woman

In a historic medical breakthrough, researchers have discovered a previously unknown blood group in a 38-year-old woman from Kolar district, Karnataka. This extraordinary finding came to light when she was admitted for cardiac surgery and her blood type was found to be incompatible with all available O-positive donor units, despite being categorised as O Rh+.

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The case was escalated to the Rotary Bangalore TTK Blood Centre and later to the International Blood Group Reference Laboratory (IBGRL) in the UK, leading to the identification of a new antigen — CRIB. This rare discovery has global significance, advancing rare blood group research, improving transfusion medicine safety, and strengthening international collaboration in inmunohematology.

Rare blood mystery as O Rh+ type shows universal incompatibility before surgery

The patient, initially identified as O Rh+; the most common blood group, required a routine transfusion ahead of cardiac surgery. However, none of the standard O-positive blood units were compatible. The hospital referred the case to the Advanced Immunohematology Reference Laboratory at the Rotary Bangalore TTK Blood Centre.