Your blood type could influence whether you live or die if you catch the corona virus

[coriolis888]

(1)

 

(2) https://www.technologynetworks.com/genomics/news/large-study-suggests-blood-type-o-may-be-a-protective-factor-against-covid-19-335881

 

 

(3) https://www.advisory.com/daily-briefing/2020/06/08/covid-genetics

Edited June 18, 2020 by coriolis888

[JayCeeKy]

I also read that Vitamin D deficiency may play a role in mortality rates of Covid-19. That may explain why African-Americans tend to have more severe symptoms of Covid-19. 40% of American adults are vitamin D deficient but for African-Americans, that number may be nearly double at 76% - this may result from blacks having larger amounts of the pigment melanin in the epidermal layer that reduce the skin's ability to produce vitamin D from sunlight.

 

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/landia/article/PIIS2213-8587(20)30183-2/fulltext

[+ purplekow]

Both Type A blood and Vitamin D deficiency have been known in the medical community for months. While both are risk factors, blood type cannot be changed so that point is moot. Getting more sun, eating Vitamin D enriched foods and even taking Vitamin D supplements, in moderation have been recommended to patients for some time. Be aware, vitamin D overdose is possible and can cause severe problems, so stay within prescribing guidelines if you decide to take it. Zinc is also though to be helpful in preventing viral infections in general and Coronavirus in particular. Vitamin C has its advocates but the evidence of a benefit in CoVid is scant.

[RealAvalon]

Both Type A blood and Vitamin D deficiency have been known in the medical community for months. While both are risk factors, blood type cannot be changed so that point is moot. Getting more sun, eating Vitamin D enriched foods and even taking Vitamin D supplements, in moderation have been recommended to patients for some time. Be aware, vitamin D overdose is possible and can cause severe problems, so stay within prescribing guidelines if you decide to take it. Zinc is also though to be helpful in preventing viral infections in general and Coronavirus in particular. Vitamin C has its advocates but the evidence of a benefit in CoVid is scant.

Yes to your Vitamin D concern. Vitamin C is water soluble and excess amounts is pissed away, so to speak. Vitamin D is fat soluble and can build up in the body.

[coriolis888]

 

Both Type A blood and Vitamin D deficiency has been known in the medical community for months. While both are risk factors, blood type cannot be changed so that point is moot.

 

 

Thank you for your response, purplekow.

 

The main reason I commented on the blood type difference was more philosophical than educational.

 

When I read that those with Type O blood had a considerably less chance of getting ill from the virus, I thought those Type O people might be more likely to take chances and not be as concerned than those who have Type A blood type. In short, Type O people might engage in more risky sexual behavior and/or may or not be concerned with masks and social distancing.

 

On the other hand, based on the articles, those with Type A have about a 50% greater chance of getting seriously ill, being placed on a ventilator and dying, versus those who have blood Type O.

 

Am I misinterpreting the articles?

Edited June 19, 2020 by coriolis888

[+ purplekow]

The difference which is statistically significant, is not, in the end clinically significant, Type A blood people have a higher risk of Stomach Cancer than the other blood types, There, where endoscopy can be done to check for the presence of gastric cancer, one might use the information to further inform a clinically decision, At this time, blood type may eventually be a key to a treatment, but for now, it is merely a statistically interesting fact, I doubt the people who would take increased risk because they have Type O blood would be informed enough to know that bit of information or even their blood type. I did see on AOL that had a headline about it CoVid and Blood Type. Tomorrow will be a different statistical nugget, Anything to keep the headlines coming,

But in answer to your question, you did not misinterpret what the article stated, but as with most things, odds are for gamblers, with patients, there are really only two odds, 0 and 100, You either have it or you don't, No change is made because of this information, at least not yet.

[coriolis888]

The difference which is statistically significant, is not, in the end clinically significant, Type A blood people have a higher risk of Stomach Cancer than the other blood types, There, where endoscopy can be done to check for the presence of gastric cancer, one might use the information to further inform a clinically decision, At this time, blood type may eventually be a key to a treatment, but for now, it is merely a statistically interesting fact, I doubt the people who would take increased risk because they have Type O blood would be informed enough to know that bit of information or even their blood type. I did see on AOL that had a headline about it CoVid and Blood Type. Tomorrow will be a different statistical nugget, Anything to keep the headlines coming,

But in answer to your question, you did not misinterpret what the article stated, but as with most things, odds are for gamblers, with patients, there are really only two odds, 0 and 100, You either have it or you don't, No change is made because of this information, at least not yet.

 

 

Thank you for the rapid response.

 

As to blood type, those (like me) who have been in the military, know their blood type. We were always required to carry our "dog tags" on which contained our name, military identification number, and blood type.

 

I have Type A blood. I am a bit concerned after reading the "50% more likely" to be one of the ventilator patients or worse.

 

I realize 50% is merely a statistic, as you wrote, but it does signify a higher risk.

 

I think it is good to be aware that Type A people are at greater risk so that we can utilize greater caution until a vaccine is available if ever one is.

 

Thanks again.

Edited June 19, 2020 by coriolis888

[coriolis888]

JUNE 18, 2020 / 10:50 AM / UPDATED 13 HOURS AGO

Blood type, genes tied to risk of severe COVID-19: a European study

 

Vishwadha Chander

2 MIN READ

 

REUTERS:

 

The ultrastructural morphology exhibited by the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV), which was identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China, is seen in an illustration released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. January 29, 2020. Alissa Eckert, MS; Dan Higgins, MAM/CDC/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

(Reuters) - A person’s blood type and other genetic factors may be linked with the severity of coronavirus infection, according to European researchers looking for further clues about why COVID-19 hits some so much harder than others.

The findings, published in The New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday, suggest people with type A blood have a higher risk of being infected with the coronavirus and developing worse symptoms.

At the peak of the epidemic in Europe, researchers analyzed the genes of more than 4,000 people to look for variations that were common in those who became infected with the coronavirus and developed severe COVID-19.

 

A cluster of variants in genes that are involved with immune responses was more common in people with severe COVID-19, they found. These genes are also involved with a cell-surface protein called ACE2 that the coronavirus uses to gain entry to and infect cells in the body.

The researchers, led by Dr. Andre Franke from Christian-Albrecht-University in Kiel, Germany, and Dr. Tom Karlsen, from Oslo University Hospital in Norway, also found a relationship between COVID-19 severity and blood type.

The risk for severe COVID-19 was 45% higher for people with type A blood than those with other blood types. It appeared to be 35% lower for people with type O.

 

“The findings ... provide specific clues as to what disease processes may be going on in severe COVID-19,” Karlsen told Reuters by email, noting that additional research is needed before the information becomes useful.

“The hope is that these and other findings ... will point the way to a more thorough understanding of the biology of COVID-19,” U.S. National Institutes of Health director and genetics expert Francis Collins wrote in his blog on Thursday.

“They also suggest that a genetic test and a person’s blood type might provide useful tools for identifying those who may be at greater risk of serious illness.”

Reporting by Vishwadha Chander in Bengaluru; Editing by Nancy Lapid and Bill Berkrot

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[+ bigjoey]

JUNE 18, 2020 / 10:50 AM / UPDATED 13 HOURS AGO

Blood type, genes tied to risk of severe COVID-19: a European study

 

Vishwadha Chander

2 MIN READ

 

REUTERS:

 

The ultrastructural morphology exhibited by the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV), which was identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China, is seen in an illustration released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. January 29, 2020. Alissa Eckert, MS; Dan Higgins, MAM/CDC/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

(Reuters) - A person’s blood type and other genetic factors may be linked with the severity of coronavirus infection, according to European researchers looking for further clues about why COVID-19 hits some so much harder than others.

The findings, published in The New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday, suggest people with type A blood have a higher risk of being infected with the coronavirus and developing worse symptoms.

At the peak of the epidemic in Europe, researchers analyzed the genes of more than 4,000 people to look for variations that were common in those who became infected with the coronavirus and developed severe COVID-19.

 

A cluster of variants in genes that are involved with immune responses was more common in people with severe COVID-19, they found. These genes are also involved with a cell-surface protein called ACE2 that the coronavirus uses to gain entry to and infect cells in the body.

The researchers, led by Dr. Andre Franke from Christian-Albrecht-University in Kiel, Germany, and Dr. Tom Karlsen, from Oslo University Hospital in Norway, also found a relationship between COVID-19 severity and blood type.

The risk for severe COVID-19 was 45% higher for people with type A blood than those with other blood types. It appeared to be 35% lower for people with type O.

 

“The findings ... provide specific clues as to what disease processes may be going on in severe COVID-19,” Karlsen told Reuters by email, noting that additional research is needed before the information becomes useful.

“The hope is that these and other findings ... will point the way to a more thorough understanding of the biology of COVID-19,” U.S. National Institutes of Health director and genetics expert Francis Collins wrote in his blog on Thursday.

“They also suggest that a genetic test and a person’s blood type might provide useful tools for identifying those who may be at greater risk of serious illness.”

Reporting by Vishwadha Chander in Bengaluru; Editing by Nancy Lapid and Bill Berkrot

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

The more we know about the virus, the better each individual will be able to make a personal risk assessment as to what activities they can do. Blood type, vitamin D levels, overweight, age, high blood pressure, diabetes, etc. will all go into the assessment along with the activity: outdoors or indoors, length of time, size of crowd, etc.

 

In addition, the state of medical care available will make a difference: medical therapies, hospital capacity, etc. that are available if one does become infected.

 

Adding to this will be our own personal behaviors like mask wearing and hand washing.

 

As people mentally make the risk assessments, some will begin doing more activities and creating a new normal that is removed from our shutdown situation. All of this added knowledge like blood type is coming at a fast pace.

[RealAvalon]

The difference which is statistically significant, is not, in the end clinically significant, Type A blood people have a higher risk of Stomach Cancer than the other blood types, There, where endoscopy can be done to check for the presence of gastric cancer, one might use the information to further inform a clinically decision, At this time, blood type may eventually be a key to a treatment, but for now, it is merely a statistically interesting fact, I doubt the people who would take increased risk because they have Type O blood would be informed enough to know that bit of information or even their blood type. I did see on AOL that had a headline about it CoVid and Blood Type. Tomorrow will be a different statistical nugget, Anything to keep the headlines coming,

But in answer to your question, you did not misinterpret what the article stated, but as with most things, odds are for gamblers, with patients, there are really only two odds, 0 and 100, You either have it or you don't, No change is made because of this information, at least not yet.

Isn't the important part of recognizing there is a difference in how the virus may affect different blood types, is learning that there IS a difference. That difference may tell us something about how the virus operates. We've exposed something new about how the virus's operates.

[+ purplekow]

Isn't the important part of recognizing there is a difference in how the virus may affect different blood types, is learning that there IS a difference. That difference may tell us something about how the virus operates. We've exposed something new about how the virus's operates.

I think the author of the article is quoted as saying that additional information is needed before this information becomes useful. I agree with that but would have added, if it ever becomes useful. Facts may be true and not useful. That the ACE2 pathway is a means of entry to the cell proved useful in spotting a reaction to vaccine and antibody determined entry in to cells now needs a work around in order to make a vaccine. This fact may bear fruit or it may just be an isolated, interesting Medical Jeopardy answer,

[RealAvalon]

I think the author of the article is quoted as saying that additional information is needed before this information becomes useful. I agree with that but would have added, if it ever becomes useful. Facts may be true and not useful. That the ACE2 pathway is a means of entry to the cell proved useful in spotting a reaction to vaccine and antibody determined entry in to cells now needs a work around in order to make a vaccine. This fact may bear fruit or it may just be an isolated, interesting Medical Jeopardy answer,

Oh my. Spring 2022, "I'll take COVID for $400 Alex"

[SirBillybob]

From what I understand, the European study has been partly misinterpreted in the press, conflating acquiring or “catching” SARS-CoV2 (analogy HIV) with the virus actually developing to the disease state: Covid-19 (analogy AIDS).

 

In fact, the Euro study in NEJM only compares the distribution of 4 blood types among Italian and Spanish patients with severe Covid-19 against control groups of blood donor samples from mainly prior to the new coronavirus. One component of the donor comparison was more recent and happened to show about 4% SARS-CoV-2 positivity; the overall comparison cohort was diluted to negligible (or perhaps 0, they may have been excluded in analyses ... too many appendices to scan).

 

This may explain why there is some misunderstanding among a few media sources that think the blood type distribution was compared between (1) those with Covid-19 and respiratory failure and (2) those who did not have enough severity for one or more of the 4 respiratory failure interventions or indeed may have the virus yet asymptomatic. The (2) was not in the methods but will likely be incorporated in future research. It might be a challenge retrospectively because a (2) comparison group likely has little to no serology yielding blood alleles compared to hospitalized/ICU patients, yet one would prefer contemporaneous sampling.

 

To sum up, the study did not research susceptibility to picking up the virus according to blood type. I believe there is a Chinese study in preprint, and perhaps other ongoing, completed, or reported research that is assessing that piece.

Edited June 19, 2020 by SirBIllybob

[Guest]

45% higher risk? 35% higher? The most important risk factor is probably the age. Also co-morbidities, especially diabetes, lung disease, and obesity:

[coriolis888]

The chart presented in the prior post is interesting in that it shows the mortality rate of patients with the virus based on age.

 

However, this thread was intended to show the effect of the blood type of a patient becoming ill from the virus.

 

Here is a recent article citing the New England Journal of Medicine that suggests genetic markers such as blood type has a major influence on whether virus patients have a higher or lower probability of a mild case versus a severe case.

 

https://www.9news.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/qa-study-identifies-blood-type-as-marker-of-risk-for-severe-covid-19-response/73-30412456-c680-486c-92c8-e2e6cdbb00c6

Edited June 20, 2020 by coriolis888

[coriolis888]

 

"They found people with Type A blood have a higher risk of catching coronavirus and of developing severe symptoms, while people with Type O blood have a lower risk.

 

10 states are seeing their highest average of daily new Covid-19 cases since the pandemic started

"Our genetic data confirm that blood group O is associated with a risk of acquiring Covid-19 that was lower than that in non-O blood groups, whereas blood group A was associated with a higher risk than non-A blood groups," the researchers wrote in their report. They found people with Type A blood had a 45% higher risk of becoming infected than people with other blood types, and people with Type O blood were just 65% as likely to become infected as people with other blood types.

 

 

The large international team first published their findings on a non-peer-reviewed preprint server. The report has now been reviewed and published in the widely respected journal."

[+ Pensant]

Thank you for the rapid response.

 

As to blood type, those (like me) who have been in the military, know their blood type. We were always required to carry our "dog tags" on which contained our name, military identification number, and blood type.

 

I have Type A blood. I am a bit concerned after reading the "50% more likely" to be one of the ventilator patients or worse.

 

I realize 50% is merely a statistic, as you wrote, but it does signify a higher risk.

 

I think it is good to be aware that Type A people are at greater risk so that we can utilize greater caution until a vaccine is available if ever one is.

 

Thanks again.

I’m O+, spend a considerable amount of time outside, take zinc picolinate, quercitin and Vitamin D. That said, I’ll still be cautious, since I have high T for my age and have read that’s also a risk factor.

[Guest]

... I’ll still be cautious, since I have high T for my age and have read that’s also a risk factor.

If that's a risk factor, I better be making my final arrangements!

[coriolis888]

 

If that's a risk factor, I better be making my final arrangements! :D

 

 

 

Those of us with Type A blood need to be more cautious than other groups considering recent revelations that this blood type is likely a factor for a higher risk for serious coronavirus complications.

 

Needless to say, it is not a good feeling to learn that one's blood type puts one at around 50% greater chance of developing major complication issues if you come down with the coronavirus.

 

Incidentally, if you do not know your blood type, it can be learned from your military "dog tags" or you can find the information on your military discharge pages, FormDD-214. You can also learn your blood type when you donate blood. Or you can spend money and have your doctor test your blood for a fee.

 

Distribution of blood types

There are 4 main blood groups: A, B, AB, and O, of which group O is the most common. In the United States, the average distribution of blood types is as follows:

 

• O-positive: 38 percent
  
• O-negative: 7 percent
  
• A-positive: 34 percent
  
• A-negative: 6 percent
  
• B-positive: 9 percent
  
• B-negative: 2 percent
  
• AB-positive: 3 percent
  
• AB-negative: 1 percent
  

 

Here is another article about the blood type issue:

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-blood-type-patients-sickest-covid-19/

[Epigonos]

I find it fascinating and somewhat unimaginable that people don't know their blood type. I learned when I was a kid, a million years ago, that I was type O Positive (the universal donor). That was confirmed every time I used to give platelets at a local cancer hospital.

I also take vitamin D daily and have no underlying health conditions of which I am aware. However, I will be 80 in October. I beginning to get the feeling that underlying health conditions is the most important factor in covid19 deaths rather than age.

[SirBillybob]

It is a challenge to determine the relative risk of age and comorbidity because it is easier to control and adjust for age in assessing the risk of any one health condition than to adjust for comorbidity in assessing the risk of age, because underlying health conditions increase with age and there are age factors other than the official presence of any of the half dozen or so underlying health conditions evaluated that may account for mortality risk.

 

So far, meta-analysis (techniques combining multiple similar studies) suggests that age alone, at the threshold of 65 years, is a far greater predictor of Covid-19 death than any single one of the health conditions assessed individually. Health conditions additively obviously paint a different picture. If you are older and otherwise healthy, as I am, it is reasonable to assume the age-exclusive odds ratio at one’s age threshold (mine is 65; 80 is another matter) does not as robustly apply.

[+ Pensant]

I find it fascinating and somewhat unimaginable that people don't know their blood type. I learned when I was a kid, a million years ago, that I was type O Positive (the universal donor). That was confirmed every time I used to give platelets at a local cancer hospital.

I also take vitamin D daily and have no underlying health conditions of which I am aware. However, I will be 80 in October. I beginning to get the feeling that underlying health conditions is the most important factor in covid19 deaths rather than age.

The issue with age is the weakening immune system. That said, you certainly look younger than 80!

[coriolis888]

 

 

It is a challenge to determine the relative risk of age and comorbidity because it is easier to control and adjust for age in assessing the risk of any one health condition than to adjust for comorbidity in assessing the risk of age because underlying health conditions increase with age and there are age factors other than the official presence of any of the half dozen or so underlying health conditions evaluated that may account for mortality risk.

 

So far, meta-analysis (techniques combining multiple similar studies) suggests that age alone, at the threshold of 65 years, is a far greater predictor of Covid-19 death than any single one of the health conditions assessed individually. Health conditions additively obviously paint a different picture. If you are older and otherwise healthy, as I am, it is reasonable to assume the age-exclusive odds ratio at one’s age threshold (mine is 65; 80 is another matter) does not as robustly apply.

 

 

The issue with age is the weakening immune system. That said, you certainly look younger than 80!

 

Thank you for posting. However, you posted about age and the virus.

 

There is a different thread that deals with age and the virus - https://m4m-forum.org/threads/more-interesting-data-regarding-covid.157633/

 

This thread is supposed to be about blood type and the virus -

 

Here is the title of this thread:

 

"Your blood type could influence whether you live or die if you catch the coronavirus"

 

You are not the first poster who got the threads confused and posted about age rather than blood type.

 

Many news outlets are posting articles about how the virus is affecting blood types regardless of age. The virus is an ever-learning process

[SirBillybob]

I posted earlier about blood type after reading the NEJM paper ... yep, actually read the manuscript because news outlets are distorting the content of the study.

 

I only posted about age and comorbidity because somebody else added them to the mix when bringing up personal circumstances.

 

That said, because odds ratios regarding blood type were presented in the paper, it is not a terrible idea to position the magnitude of blood-type predictability of disease severity against predictability of age and/or underlying health conditions, factors that far exceed the effects of blood type. The influence of blood type on respiratory severity is similar to the variable of gender on mortality. Oops, I did it again, bringing up sex in a thread on blood type.

 

What I did not do earlier was critique the thread title. The study did not report on the influence of blood type on final outcome. In fact, the ARS cohort was stratified across a 4-level range of interventions from minimally to maximally invasive. One would reasonably assume that outcome among the ARS patients was known in terms of recovery versus death. Perhaps the association was not robust or significant and was conveniently omitted.

 

It is not a stretch to extrapolate that blood type influenced death if it firstly influenced severity UNLESS it didn’t in the former (death) and if that reality was excluded or the test of related mortality hypotheses is sidelined to another manuscript.

 

Researchers should know their audience, though, and anyone interested in morbidity severity is even more interested in the bottom line regarding death.

 

Because the researchers compared the predictability of blood type between mechanical ventilation and less invasive respiratory support, finding no difference, it is even more spurious to extrapolate that blood type (O is salutary, A is liable) is implicated in Covid-19 death.

Edited June 21, 2020 by SirBIllybob

[coriolis888]

 

I posted earlier about blood type after reading the NEJM paper ... yep, actually read the manuscript because news outlets are distorting the content of the study.

 

I only posted about age and comorbidity because somebody else added them to the mix when bringing up personal circumstances.

 

 

The issue of blood types and the coronavirus have been reported in countless news outlets all over the world. Innumerable articles were written in many languages, then translated into English and reported in the United States.

 

Are you saying those articles are distorted or incorrect? The articles are similar in content.

 

Many countries have superb medical facilities with expert scientists. Strange, is it, not one reputable scientist, such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, for example, has come out to contradict the news media articles as being distorted?

 

While it is true there is nothing one can do about one's blood type, it is helpful to know that certain blood types are more at risk from the virus than others. Those more at risk can exercise more caution against the virus, such as masks and distances et cetera.

 

Here is another article that continues along the same line as the other recent reports concerning blood types and the coronavirus.

 

Is this article also distorted?

 

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-06-blood-genetics-impact-odds-severe.html