eli5: What happens when you get a blood transfusion with the wrong/incompatible blood type?

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eli5: What happens when you get a blood transfusion with the wrong/incompatible blood type?

In: Biology

15 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Your body has antibodies that attack blood that isn’t the same kind as yours. 

These immune cells physically rip apart the foreign blood cells. 

This causes a few problems:
-The broken blood cells can cause a clotting reaction in the blood, and you blood goes from liquid to jelly 

-Your body now has a ton of destroyed red blood cells that need to be broken down and gotten rid of. If not done fast enough the extra can be deposited in the skin and brain, which can cause damage 

-Some people have such a big immune reaction they can go into anaphylaxis. 

-You are dealing with the above issues, while already not healthy.  

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