SAN ANTONIO — Now that we are approaching two years into the coronavirus pandemic, researchers are learning more and more about the disease and how to fight it. One of our viewers wanted to know if blood type had anything to do with one's battle with COVID.
THE QUESTION
Does a person with type O blood do better with COVID than people with other blood types?
THE SOURCES
- Dr. Jan Patterson, UT Health San Antonio
- A Hacettepe University study
THE ANSWER
We all know genetics have a lot to say when it comes to how our bodies can fight off disease. Tonight's VERIFY question comes from Jorge Rivera.
The claim..."A person with type O blood does better with COVID than people with other blood types."
Our sources are Dr. Jan Patterson, an infectious disease specialist at UT Health San Antonio, who also sees patients within University Health, the Harvard Medical School.
We turn to Dr. Patterson first. She told us, "There are some studies that show that people with type O blood seem less likely to get infection. And some studies, about half of those studies also show that they may have less severe infection if they do get infected."
A study by Hacettepe University published in the National Library of Medicine found..."...while blood group A might have a role in increased susceptibility to the COVID-19 infection, the blood group O might be somewhat protective. However, once infected, blood group type does not seem to influence clinical outcome."
So this Verify was found to be inconclusive. It is still largely unknown if a person with type O blood does better with COVID than other blood types. But it does appear that those with type O blood are less likely to be infected.