Risk Factors, Coronary Severity, Outcome and ABO Blood Group: A Large Chinese Han Cohort Study

ABO blood type locus has been reported to have ethnic difference and to be a pivotal genetic determinant of cardiovascular risk, whereas few prospective data regarding the impact on cardiovascular outcomes are available in a large cohort of patients with angiography-proven coronary artery disease, especially from the Chinese population. The objective of this study was to assess the prognostic role of blood type in future cardiovascular events (CVEs) in Chinese Han patients undergoing coronary angiography. The population of this prospective cohort study consisted of 3823 eligible patients, and followed annually to capture all CVEs. Baseline characteristics and ABO blood type were obtained. Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate the risk of ABO blood type on CVEs. New CVEs occurred in 348 patients [263 (10.3%) non-O and 85 (7.8%) O] during a median period of 24.6 months follow-up. Significantly, non-O blood group was related to the presence and severity of coronary atherosclerosis and several risk factors including inflammatory markers. The log-rank test revealed that there was a significant difference between non-O and O blood groups in event-free survival analysis (P = 0.026). In particular, the Cox proportional hazards models revealed that non-O blood type was associated with increased CVEs risk [hazard ratio (95% confidence interval) 1.320 (1.033–1.685)], even after adjusting for potential confounders [adjusted hazard ratio (95% confidence interval) non-O: 1.289 (1.003–1.656); A: 1.083 (0.797–1.472); B: 1.481 (1.122–1.955); AB: 1.249 (0.852–1.831), respectively]. Non-O blood type is associated with future CVEs in Chinese Han patients undergoing coronary angiography.