Association of ABO Blood Group and the Risk of COVID-19 Infection

Aims: Although the preliminary studies have reported that some ABO system antigens may predispose individuals to COVID-19 infection, their findings are still under debate. The present study aimed to investigate the association of ABO blood group with the risk of COVID-19 infection, its hematology findings and mortality. Instrument Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in all patients referred to Shahid Jalil Hospital in Yasuj city, southwest Iran, due to the possibility of infection with COVID-19 from May to October 2021. Totally, 182 patients were recruited using the census method. Data were analyzed using Chi-Square, independent T, and one-way-ANOVA tests in SPSS 21 software. Findings: The ESR, red cell distribution width (RDW), and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) were significantly different between the COVID-19 negative and positive groups. There were no significant differences in ABO blood types between the COVID-19 positive and negative groups according to gender (p=0.148). There was no significant association between the ABO blood group phenotypes and the mean of demographic and laboratory information in the COVID-19 positive patients. Conclusion: There is no association between ABO blood groups and COVID-19 infection and its mortality.