Introduction:

Irregular antibodies are immunoglobulins that differ from the natural antibodies of the ABO blood group system. They arise from exposure to allogeneic red blood cell antigens during a transfusion or pregnancy, or another unknown triggering factor. These antibodies react with specific antigens, are very rare in blood donors, and can cause serious adverse reactions due to donor-recipient incompatibility.

Objective:

To determine the frequency of irregular antibodies in blood donors at a blood collection centre.

Methodology:

An observational, descriptive, retrospective, cross-sectional design was used. The study included 51,860 blood donors over the age of 18 who visited the Blood and Cell Therapy Production Centre of the Social Security Institute, Central Hospital, Asunción, Paraguay, during the years 2020, 2021, and 2022.

Results:

The most frequent age group of donors was 31 to 35 years old, with males predominating (63.4%). The frequency of irregular antibodies was 0.49%, with a predominance in women (72.1%).

Conclusion:

The frequency of irregular antibodies was very low, comparable to that reported by other countries in the region. The determination of irregular antibodies in blood production centres remains essential and necessary despite their low frequency, given that their presence can cause catastrophic complications in the recipient.

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