In a recent study published in eLife, researchers found links between certain blood groups and 49 diseases, including a finding that having blood group B seems to be a protective factor against kidney stones.
The team used data from more than five million people and over 1,000 diseases.
The finding confirms connections between certain blood groups and increased risk of blood clots, bleeding conditions or pregnancy-induced hypertension.
The study is from Karolinska Institutet. One author is Torsten Dahlén.
A person’s type of blood can vary depending on which proteins, so-called antigens, occupy the surface of the red blood cells. Two systems—ABO and RhD—are commonly used to define one’s blood group.
The ABO-system contains four main blood groups: A, B, AB and O, each of which can be either RhD positive or RhD negative.
Identifying a person’s blood group is essential for the safe administration of blood transfusions. It has also been used to make inferences about the susceptibility of certain diseases.
In the study, the team scanned Swedish health registries with information on more than five million people and found 49 diseases that were linked to the ABO system, and one that was linked to the RhD system.
Their findings confirmed that people with blood group A were more likely to experience a blood clot and that those with blood group O were more likely to experience a bleeding disorder.
They also verified that women with blood group O were more likely to experience pregnancy-induced hypertension.
Additionally, they found a new connection between having blood group B and a lower risk of developing kidney stones. And women who were RhD-positive were more likely to experience pregnancy-induced hypertension.
The researchers say that more studies are needed to confirm the results and to determine how different blood types or groups may increase the risk of certain diseases, or whether there are alternative explanations for these relationships.
The findings highlight new links between conditions such as kidney stones and pregnancy-induced hypertension and blood type or group.
They lay the groundwork for future studies to identify the mechanisms behind disease development, or for finding new ways to identify and treat individuals with certain conditions.
If you care about blood types and diseases, please read studies about blood type and blood clot: What you need to know and findings of blood type could impact your risk for severe COVID-19.
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