Immunohematology in Taiwan.

There are major differences in the distribution of blood group antigens and antibodies between the different population groups of Taiwan and whites. As a result, standard Western pretransfusion testing procedures have been modified for use in Taiwan, resulting in great reductions in cost and labor. These differences, in addition to their influence on the clinical practise of transfusion medicine in Taiwan, are also important anthropologically, and it is hoped that more population groups in Asia can be investigated in the near future. Further DNA studies on the B3 phenotype, the MiIII phenotype, and the Lewis phenotypes among our different population groups are in progress and further interesting findings are awaited.