Association between COVID-19 Infection Susceptibility and ABO Blood Groups and Rhesus Antigen

Abstract

COVID-19, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, is a highly contagious disease that has been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization, leading to widespread impacts. Objective: To investigate the potential relationship between ABO blood groups and susceptibility to the coronavirus. Methods: This study was conducted at The University of Lahore between April and September 2021. Blood groups of 528 SARS-CoV2-positive patients admitted to various hospitals in Punjab was calculated by both forward and reverse blood grouping technique. Data analysis was performed using the SPSS version 25.0. Results: The mean age was found to be 41.5 years, with a range of 16-90 years, among which 63.3% were male (n = 334) and 36.7% (n = 194) were female. The data were categorized according to blood group type. A+ (13.4%), A- (8.5%), B- (8.7%), B+ (22.5%), O+ (19.5%), O- (4.9%), AB+ (11.9%), and AB- (10.4%). A, B, and AB were associated with high susceptibility to COVID-19 infection, i.e., 75.5% (n = 399), and less frequent in the O blood group, 24.5% (n = 129). RH (D) ve+ type blood group was highest at 67.5% (n = 356) in COVID-19 patients as compared to the RH (D) –ve type blood group at 32.5% (n = 172), respectively. Conclusions: Individuals with blood groups A, B, and AB have been observed to be more susceptible to COVID-19 than those with blood group O. Similarly, individuals who are RH positive are considered more vulnerable to coronavirus than those who are RH negative.