Blood Types and Covid-19

Hello @jack32, Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. I am like most members here on Connect - no medical training or background. I am also A positive blood type with several autoimmune conditions so I try to follow the current guidelines and hopefully prevent catching the COVID-19 virus. That said, I've also read everyone will get it eventually. I did find a recent study that mentions what Blood type A+ may be higher risk but I think you have to take some of the studies with a grain of salt until more scientific evidence is found. Here's one study I found that mentions it:

COVID-19 patients with blood group 'A+' more likely to need oxygen support:
-- Study: https://www.indiatvnews.com/science/coronavirus-study-patients-with-blood-group-a-at-higher-risk-covid-19-treatment-623551

@sueinmn may have some suggestions or thoughts to share with you. You may be interested in reading the following discussion with other members who are discussing how to stay safe.

I'm high-risk. How to stay safe when things start opening again?: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/covig-19/

Other than having a blood type of A+, do you have any other concerns about the risk of coming down with COVID-19?

@johnbishop As far as things opening up . I,m staying at home for about 6 weeks to see if virus is coming back because of this . I concerned right now for a friend who is going to a birthday party tomorrow ,don,t know how many people will be there but told her she maybe at risk going

No other concerns than this at the moment. Thanks for the reply.

That blood type which I have among other other compromises like age, GCA, heart surgery in 2016 was stated in The NY Times.
Best of luck to all of us with that blood type.
Carol

I've struggling to find some expert medical opinions on this study yet. And then there's the question why is blood type playing a role here?

@jack32, I'm wondering in my mind knowing why blood type makes a difference either way? I really get why you want to know but if the main goal is not to get COVID-19, isn't it better to focus on things you can control? I'm blood type A positive myself. I know I can't change my blood type. So if I know people with blood type A+ are higher at risk, my choices are to do everything in my power to protect myself from getting the virus.

I suspect blood type plays a role in a lot of different health conditions but I really don't know. Maybe someone else may be able to provide an answer.

@jack32 & @johnbishop I know John invited me in here for a reason - maybe because I always say "Stay tuned for further developments."

I am going to play the skeptic here - it's WAY too early to pay attention to any "preliminary studies." There are far more unknowns and speculations than facts, and even this week two early reports from The Lancet have been withdrawn pending further review. Because of the newness of this virus, there are no results available yet from unbiased, controlled studies done over a reasonable period of time and then peer-reviewed, which is the gold standard for research studies.

There are only reports of what has been observed in people who got the virus. The problem with those reports is that we still don't understand who is more likely to get the virus. We do have some indication that certain factors like age, obesity, and diabetes make complications from Covid-19 more likely if you get it. And there are indications that the closeness and duration of exposure make getting the virus more likely.

For now, when considering how much weigh to give any study, consider the following:
Is the study "observational" only, or is it an intentional, controlled study?
Where is it being reported, the general media or a scientific journal?
How many people or places does the study cover, and how many doctors/scientists/institutions not otherwise afiliated with one another are part of the study?
Are the same results being reported independently in multiple studies?
Was the study peer reviewed before publication?

For myself, I consider an observational study, not peer reviewed and reported in the media to be "not ready for prime time" and I await confirmation as outlined . If it is true that people with A+ blood get more complications, it will be further studied and reported. Or it may be determined that those people are more susceptiple to getting a certain disease or illness, and that underlying illness predisposes one to more severe Covid-19 or more complications.

The best strategy at this point is to do what John says and follow precautions based on your personal risk factors. Especially, wash your hands frequently and maintain social distance.

Sue

Usually, I try to think about this more rationally. However, it's sometimes hard for me to do this for one being that I also have health anxiety and secondly I think I am blood group A. Also, my health anxiety becomes a bit worst after I was diagnosed with a DVT a few years ago that originally got misdiagnosed as a pulled muscle.

So, last night as I went to bed I read through some news to see if there was any good news and then the first thing that I come across in the headlines is that those with Blood Type A may be more susceptible to getting the virus as well needing treatment in hospitals according to pre-print studies. Now, I had already heard about another study that was done in China which showed a connection between blood types and coronavirus at the beginning of this outbreak. And I remember asking my Doctor about this study (which was a preliminary study by the way) and she told me not to worry too much because almost half of the country I'm in which is the UK is blood group A anyway while blood group O is marginally more common.

Anyway, As I said, I recently came across more preliminary studies (yet to be peer-reviewed) highlighted in some media articles. These studies involve countries such as Italy, Spain, Germany, Norway, USA, and Russia. Since reading this I have also been struggling to come across any reliable information by medical expert opinions on this so far. A lot of stuff I've come up with is garbage like eathis.com or eureka.com.

Moreover, according to some of these studies, those with blood group A may have a 50% higher risk of contracting the disease. While those with blood group O may have a 50 % low risk. Also, some theories and observations regarding why people with blood group A may have worse cases of the virus as well as my own thoughts include:

Cytokine Storms
Excessive Coagulation
It was six percent of the blood group A that become more ill.
It's not clear whether the genetic markers for this blood type made people more susceptible or actual blood type itself.
Almost all the patients in Russia are blood group A although their condition is pretty much stable right now.
Several of the other comorbidities associated with Covid-19 as a higher risk is also associated with have blood group A.
While blood group A is the second most common blood group it could be that more blood group A people were more exposed (my own thought).
This could just be a correlation and there is no causal factor here (my own thought).
Either the study or the media said that this could explain why some young people who others otherwise well are becoming seriously ill with the disease. However, it still is a rare occurrence and so can we really conclude that blood groups are playing a role in young and healthy people getting worse cases (a question of mine)?
What do we know about the people with blood group A that had the disease but only had mild cases or were asymptomatic? Did the studies only involve people that were in the hospital and not involve anyone of any blood group outside of the hospital? Is this perhaps coincidental? (Some more queries of mine).
If it is the blood group that is responsible then why? Is this because some people with this blood group are more likely to have cytokine storms or excessive coagulation that result in blood clotting as a result of being infected? Is excessive coagulation also a result of an over-reacting immune response? If this is the case then would that mean people with this blood group to be more susceptible to other infections such as Influenza? (More questions of mine)
Does this also explain why some people may get Anaphylaxis which I think is something to do with Cytokine Storms as well? Furthermore, does this also mean that those of us that are already on Anti-coagulants for the prevention of DVTs at reduced risk of having a bad case of Covid-19? (More questions of mine)

@jack32 Perhaps a way to ease your anxiety would be to stopreading media coverage and stick to published, peer reviewed articles on medical, academic or government sites.

I do not have enough knowledge to engage in a meaningful discussion - anything would be pure speculation and the media is already full ot that.

Here are some more positive thoughts to concentrate on:
While Covid-19 is indeed serious and can be scary, at least 90% of people who actually fall ill with the virus recover without hospital care.
Many more people get the virus and never actually become ill, so death and hospitalization rates are likely overstated.
Too much media exposure actually increases anxiety - turn off the TV, get off the Internet, try reading a book, taking a walk, watching a movie...
There are actions you personally can take to reduce your risk of infection - wash hands well & often, practice social distancing, consider wearing a mask when you cannot control distance, eat well and exercise...

What can you do to get out of the rut of constantly searching for studies?
Sue

Hi, @jack32, Because I have multiple chronic health conditions and am a "young-at-heart" 76 year old, I have been self-quarantined since March 13th. Typically one who likes to "delve deeper" and research various topics or concerns, I initially listened to daily news reports about the spread of COVID-19. Since I am also an "easy" worrier, I have been surprised at how I've managed to not become outlandishly anxious or depressed over these past weeks.

However, last week both personal and national events, coupled with my community and state throwing the public restart doors wide open, overwhelmed me. I decided that I needed to take a break from all tv and media news reports. Regardless of what is happening outside my control, I am spending more time in doing physical things like walks, gardening and indulging in music, books and hobbies that interest and relax me. My age and conditions haven't changed but the direction I've chosen to spend most of my time is restoring my calm. Local and state COVID numbers are important to me because they will determine how much longer I will choose to isolate. What diversions do you enjoy that bring you pleasure and more peace of mind?