We have come across this situation as well, since we use Gel for our first type and tube for the 2nd confirmation type. There was an article in March 2008 Transfusion by Judd in which he addresses this issue. He suggests that the final interpretation of Rh type be negative if if you get a weak to 1+ by tube and a 2+ by Gel. Our medical director made the decision that this would be the approach we would take. We have been doing it now for almost 2 years. It was a bit confusing in the beginging, but blood bank staff is very comfortable now with the policy. We also developed an information sheet for physicians and nursing that explained why there is a difference in Rh type depending on hte technique used. We shared it with the LD staff as well as put it on our intranet. Now when we get a phone call about the discrepancy between our type and the pre natal type we refer them to the info sheet.
