Coombs test

The Coombs test is a medical test used to detect antibodies in a person's blood that can cause problems with red blood cells. It helps diagnose conditions like autoimmune hemolytic anemia, where the body mistakenly attacks its own red blood cells, or to check for incompatibility in blood transfusions and during pregnancy. There are two types of Coombs tests: direct and indirect. The direct test examines a person's blood to see if their immune system is attacking their own red blood cells, while the indirect test checks for antibodies that could attack red blood cells from another person.