Shamee Shastry: Sometimes the Answer is Not in the Test Tube Alone, but at the Patient’s Bedside
Shamee Shastry, Professor and Head of the Department of Immunohematology and Blood Transfusion at Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, shared on LinkedIn about a recent article she and her colleagues co-authored, published in Transfusion, adding:
“Some cases stay with you forever.
I still remember the first patient with a snake bite-associated ABO discrepancy that landed on my desk.
A young O RhD-positive patient showed an unusual finding: an isolated absence of expected anti-A antibodies.
We applied every standard resolution technique we knew, yet the discrepancy persisted.
Curiosity took over. I went to the bedside, obtained a detailed history, dove deep into the literature, and even collected the residual anti-snake venom that had been administered. What followed was a fascinating experiment that ultimately solved the mystery.
What made this experiment even more rewarding was its broader impact. Following the publication of this case report, this phenomenon was recognized and included in the AABB Technical Manual as one of the causes of unexpected problems in plasma and serum ABO testing, contributing to greater awareness among transfusion medicine professionals.
That case taught me an important lesson: sometimes the answer is not in the test tube alone, but at the patient’s bedside.”
Title: A rare case of missing antibody due to anti-snake venom
Authors: Shamee Shastry, Sudha S. Bhat, Karandeep Singh
Stay updated on all scientific advances with Hemostasis Today.
-
Sep 5, 2026, 02:28N. Mariana S. Vasquez: Warm vs Cold Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia for USMLE/NBME Questions
-
Sep 4, 2026, 22:03Maeve Crowley: Haemophilia Treatment Over the Decades and Hope for the Future
-
Sep 4, 2026, 22:01Lama Skieker: Understanding Thrombocytopenia in Malaria
-
Sep 4, 2026, 22:00Hiten Patel: How an IVC Filter Helps Prevent Pulmonary Embolism
-
Sep 4, 2026, 21:54Gianluca Costamagna: Investigating the Link Between Cancer and Acute Ischemic Stroke
-
Sep 4, 2026, 21:50Ben Creagh-Brown: PRAGUE-26 and HI-PEITHO Similar Benefits With Important Differences
-
Sep 4, 2026, 21:48Jin-Xiong She: Homocysteine beyond Heart Disease – The Methylation-Mobility Connection
-
Sep 4, 2026, 21:44Aravind Palraj: Anemia of Chronic Inflammation is Not Just “Iron Deficiency”
-
Sep 4, 2026, 21:41Chokri Ben Lamine: Fundamental HSCT Workshop for Hematology Fellows at HAAG 2026