COVID-19: Blood Type

Written by ODX Research | Jul 28, 2021 6:15:00 PM

Biomarker characteristics and blood type - help sharpen the COVID-19 clinical picture

Dicken Weatherby, N.D. and Beth Ellen DiLuglio, MS, RDN, LDN

Blood type was assessed as a factor in susceptibility and severity of COVID-19.

The ODX COVID-19 Series

Biomarker clues to COVID-19 severity lie in their specific characteristics:[i]

Albumin levels correlate with hepatic and renal function and may reflect long-term nutrition status
Serum albumin of less than 2.9 mg/dL (29 g/L) was the best predictor for ICU admission in a retrospective study of 427 COVID-19 patients. [albumin levels decrease with inflammation]
Cardiac troponin levels may reveal cardiovascular compromise
D-dimer may reveal blood clotting dysfunction
Ferritin and CRP elevations may reflect an increased inflammatory state
LDH increases may reflect lung damage or widespread tissue damage
The best cutoffs for predicting mortality from COVID-19 were LDH above 731 U/L (12.2 ukat/L), and an albumin of 1.8 mg/dL (18 g/L) or lower.
Cutoffs for COVID-19 severity also included a ferritin of greater than 2824 ng/mL (6.3 nmol/L) and CRP greater than 30.3 mg/dL (303 mg/L).
D-dimer may be useful in patient triage as levels of 1 ug/mL or greater on admission were associated with increased mortality.[ii]

Blood Type and COVID-19

Research suggests that blood type may have an association with testing positive but did not correlate with the severity of COVID-19.[iii] [iv] Blood type did not correlate with intubation or risk of death in those positive with COVID-19.

Type O blood were less likely to test positive
Type A blood had no association with testing positive
Type B and type AB had higher odds of testing positive
Rh+ status increased odds of testing positive

A prospective study of 164 COVID-19 positive patients with hypertension assessed inflammatory and thrombotic status, and clinical outcomes with regard to blood type: 92 had non-O-type blood and 72 had O-type blood. Results indicated that[v]

Non-O-type individuals had significantly higher pro-thrombotic indices
Non-O-type blood was an independent predictor of cardiac injury and death
- Rates of cardiac injury were significantly higher in the non-O-type blood group (29.3% vs 13.9%).
- Rates of death were significantly higher in the non-O-blood type group (19.6% vs 8.3%)
IL-6 levels were independent predictors of cardiac injury and mortality
D-dimer levels were also independent predictors of mortality

A variety of factors contribute to COVID-19 sequelae. Incorporating these factors into a broad clinical assessment may provide previously overlooked clues to this coronavirus puzzle.

Next Up - COVID-19: Initial indications and conventional interventions

Research

[i] Aloisio, Elena et al. “A comprehensive appraisal of laboratory biochemistry tests as major predictors of COVID-19 severity.” Archives of pathology & laboratory medicine, 10.5858/arpa.2020-0389-SA. 10 Jul. 2020, doi:10.5858/arpa.2020-0389-SA

[ii] Gallo Marin, Benjamin et al. “Predictors of COVID-19 severity: A literature review.” Reviews in medical virology, e2146. 30 Jul. 2020, doi:10.1002/rmv.2146

[iii] Latz, Christopher A et al. “Blood type and outcomes in patients with COVID-19.” Annals of hematology vol. 99,9 (2020): 2113-2118. doi:10.1007/s00277-020-04169-1

[iv] Mendy, Angelico et al. “Is Blood Type Associated with COVID-19 Severity?.” medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences 2020.08.11.20172676. 14 Aug. 2020, doi:10.1101/2020.08.11.20172676. Preprint.

[v] Sardu, Celestino et al. “Implications of AB0 blood group in hypertensive patients with covid-19.” BMC cardiovascular disorders vol. 20,1 373. 14 Aug. 2020, doi:10.1186/s12872-020-01658-z

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