Final answer:
A maternal panel including ABO Rh blood typing is performed in a clinical laboratory to identify the mother's blood type and to detect potential Rh incompatibility, which could lead to hemolytic disease of the newborn if not treated.
Step-by-step explanation:
The order for a maternal panel that includes ABO Rh blood typing will be performed in a clinical laboratory setting, typically within a hospital or specialized reference laboratory. In the case of an Rh-negative mother carrying an Rh-positive fetus, the mother's immune system may produce anti-Rh antibodies after being sensitized during a previous pregnancy with an Rh-positive fetus or through an Rh-incompatible blood transfusion. This can lead to hemolytic disease of the newborn (HDN), resulting in an antigen-antibody reaction that causes agglutination and hemolysis of the fetus's red blood cells (RBCs), which can be fatal without treatment. ABO blood typing is done by adding an unknown blood sample to wells containing anti-A or anti-B antibodies to test for agglutination, while Rh typing requires the use of an anti-Rh antibody in a similar manner. An additional antibody screen test is used to determine the presence of other antibodies in the patient's serum by checking against type O red cells expressing various antigens.