PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Wesam A. Nasif
AU  - Abeer S.E. Ali
AU  - Asim A. Khogeer
AU  - Mohammed H. Mukhtar
AU  - Mohamed M. NourEldein
AU  - Ahmed Y. Shebly
AU  - Shumukh H. Alqahtani
AU  - Yahya A. Alnashri
AU  - Ghaidaa E. Khouj
AU  - Ziyad I. Gadah
AU  - Mohammad A. Althubiti
TI  - Emphasizing the link between blood types in multi-ethnic disparities and COVID-19 infection in Makkah, Saudi Arabia
AID  - 10.15537/smj.2022.43.2.20210847
DP  - 2022 Feb 01
TA  - Saudi Medical Journal
PG  - 177--186
VI  - 43
IP  - 2
4099  - http://smj.org.sa/content/43/2/177.short
4100  - http://smj.org.sa/content/43/2/177.full
SO  - Saudi Med J2022 Feb 01; 43
AB  - Objectives: To analyze the impact and distribution of blood groups in different ethnicities and the extent of susceptibility to infection with COVID-19 in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.Methods: A retrospective study was performed on 4,609 COVID-19 patients from five ethnic groups to assess the impact and distribution of different blood types and susceptibility to COVID-19 infection. The study was carried out between November 2020 and June 2021 in the College of Medicine, Umm Al-Qura University in collaboration with the General Directorate of Health Affairs, Makkah, Saudi Arabia.Results: Blood group (A, B, and O) distributions in 2,617 COVID-19 patients with local control populations was done. Our study found that in both Saudi and non-Saudi populations, blood groups O and A were associated with higher infection rates, whereas blood group AB was associated with lower infection rates (p=0.0001). COVID-19 seems to be associated with blood groups A, B, and AB (RR=3.23, 95% CI=2.702-3.821, p=0.0001). COVID-19 risk was lower in people with O blood group (RR=0.783, 95% CI=0.733-0.836, p=0.0001). South Asians had higher odds of COVID-19 infection when compared to Saudi cases and other ethnic groups (OR=1.12, 95 % CI: 1.074-1.24, p=0.04).Conclusion: We emphasize that COVID-19 infection is not proportional among ethnically related blood groups. Notably, RhD-negative protect against COVID-19, whereas A and O blood types are more susceptible. Thus, when assessing COVID-19 prognosis and vaccination priority, blood groups A and O are critical.