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Epidemiology
Research
Frequencies and ethnic distribution of ABO and RhD blood groups in China: a population-based cross-sectional study
  1. Jue Liu1,
  2. Shikun Zhang2,
  3. Qiaomei Wang2,
  4. Haiping Shen2,
  5. Yiping Zhang2,
  6. Min Liu1
  1. 1 Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
  2. 2 Department of Maternal and Child Health, National Health and Family Planning Commission of the Peoples Republic of China, Beijing, China
  1. Correspondence to Professor Min Liu; liumin{at}bjmu.edu.cn

Abstract

Objectives ABO and RhD blood groups are key factors affecting blood transfusion safety. The distribution of ABO and RhD blood groups varies globally, but limited data exist for ethnic distributions of these blood groups in Asian populations. We aimed to evaluate the distribution of ABO and RhD blood groups among Chinese ethnic groups.

Design A population-based cross-sectional study.

Setting Data on ABO groups and ethnicities were obtained from the National Free Preconception Health Examination Project (NFPHEP) with participants from 220 counties of 31 provinces in China

Participants There were 3 832 034 participants aged 21–49 years who took part in the NFPHEP from January 2010 to December 2012 and were included in this study.

Outcome Measures The proportion of ABO and RhD blood groups among different ethnic groups was calculated.

Results ABO and RhD blood distribution was significantly different among nine ethnic groups (P<0.001). Compared with other ethnic groups, the Yi group had more A phenotypes (34.0%), and the Manchu (33.7%) and Mongolian (33.3%) ethnic groups had more B phenotypes. The Zhuang group had the greatest proportion of O phenotypes (41.8%), followed by the Miao group (37.7%). AB phenotypes were more frequent in the Uygur ethnic group (10.6%) but lower in the Zhuang group (5.5%). Meanwhile, RhD negativity (RhD–) was greater in the Uygur group (3.3%) than in the Mongolian (0.3%) and Manchu ethnic groups (0.4%). O RhD– blood groups were more frequent in the Uygur group (0.8%) than in the other ethnic groups (0.1%–0.4%, P<0.001).

Conclusion ABO and RhD blood phenotypes vary across different ethnic groups in China. The diversity in the distribution of the ABO and RhD blood groups in different ethnic groups should be considered when developing rational and evidence-based strategies for blood collection and management.

  • epidemiology
  • public health

This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-018476

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    Footnotes

    • Contributors JL and SZ searched the literature, designed the study, analyzed the data, interpreted the results, and drafted the manuscript. QW, HS and YZ collected the data and revised the manuscript. ML conceived the study, designed the study, supervised the study, interpreted the results, and revised the manuscript. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript. ML is the study guarantors. ML has the right to grant on behalf of all authors and does grant on behalf of all authors.

    • Funding This work was supported by grants from the Chinese Association of Maternal and Child Health Studies (AMCHS-2014-5).

    • Disclaimer The views expressed in the report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Maternal and Child Health of National Health and Family Planning Commission in China.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Patient consent Obtained.

    • Ethics approval This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Chinese Association of Maternal and Child Health Studies.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

    • Data sharing statement Due to privacy and ethical concerns, supporting data cannot be made openly available. Please contact the authors for the access of the original data.