Association between ABO blood types and the prognosis and mortality rates in patients with severe COVID-19 admitted in the intensive care unit of a tertiary-level hospital in Turkey

Abstract

Objectives

There is limited number of data showing possible correlation between ABO blood types and prognosis and mortality of COVID-19 patients. It was aimed to investigate whether ABO blood group type affects the prognosis and mortality rates in patients with severe COVID-19 hospitalized in the ICU (intensive care unit) of a tertiary-level hospital in Turkey.

Methods

The data of 273 patients with diagnosis of severe COVID-19 who were admitted to ICU from April 2020 through June 2021 and in an age range between 25–93 years were evaluated in this retrospective study.

Results

Blood group distribution was 47.3, 13.2, 10.6 and 28.9% for groups A, B, AB, and O, respectively. As a respiratory status at admission to ICU, the ratio of intubation patients with blood type O was significantly higher than of other groups while most of patients in group A achieved spontaneous respiration without any mechanical ventilator (p = .0168). The mean neutrophil ratio, NLR, concentrations of procalcitonin, lactate, urea and ferritin significantly increased in the serum of patients with type O (p < .01 for all except p = .016 for the ferritin). The weaning duration was longest among patients with blood group O while the hospitalization duration was longest among patients with group AB; however, there was not significant difference (p > .05). The highest mortality rate was calculated in group AB as 68.97% and lowest was 47.2% in group B without any statistical difference (p > .05).

Conclusion

ABO blood types carry different association risk factors for the prognosis of severe COVID-19 patients hospitalized in ICU. Specifically, blood group O was correlated with an increased risk of deterioration of respiratory status including intubation and elevation of laboratory findings whereas it did not affect the risk of increased mortality.

Keywords:

• ABO blood types
• COVID-19
• intensive care unit
• mortality

Transparency

Declaration of funding

This research received no external funding.

Declaration of financial/other relationships

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Author contributions

SK collected patient data, designed the study in LKB, and wrote the article.

Acknowledgements

None.