Two recent studies have attempted to learn more about the severity of the disease as well as the blood group variable in the risk of coronavirus infection. According to researchers, the best-off people belong to blood types O.
We know that the severity of SARS-CoV-2 can vary from person to person and that several factors may come into play. Generally, the weakest individuals are those over sixty due to their health profile. In addition, some studies suggest differences in severity between men and women. This work has highlighted a more intense action of T lymphocytes in women.
What if coronavirus severity could have a link to blood type ? Evidence is beginning to emerge for this, but also for variability in susceptibility to infection . Two studies were published in the journal Blood Advances on October 14. The first was conducted by the University of British Columbia (Canada) and the second by Odense University Hospital (Denmark).
The first study involved observing samples from around 100 patients between February and April 2020. According to the researchers, Covid-19 patients with group A or AB seem to present a greater risk of severity than group O or B patients. In fact, 84% of A and AB patients were placed on ventilation compared to 61% of O and B patients. 5 days less in intensive care.
At the level of the second study, this time it is a question of susceptibility to infection. In other words, it is about the risks of a development of the coronavirus in the event of infection. Again, people in groups O have less risk of contracting an infection to SARS-CoV-2. Retrospectively, the researchers analyzed 500,000 patient profiles in the Netherlands. The aim was to compare the distribution of blood groups in these infected people with a control group of two million people.
Be aware that these results may be influenced by the distribution of blood groups in the population studied. Nevertheless, a study dating back fifteen years concerning SARS-CoV-1 (2003) had already mentioned the influence of the distribution of blood groups on the risk of infection.
