Mason and colleagues, perhaps in a first attempt, screened 878 Ethiopian soldiers who were participating in the Korean War in the late 1940s and found ‘O’, ‘A’, ‘B’ and ‘AB’ to be 41.2, 28.5, 24.0 and 6.3%, respectively. Nationwide ABO-Rh(D) blood group data is lacking in Ethiopia. In this study, blood type ‘O’ was the most dominant types followed by ‘A’, ‘B’ and ‘AB’. The level of statistical significance was at p<0.05. The Chi-squared test was used to test the association between blood group and ethnic origin, as well as to compare observed allelic and genotypic frequency distributions of the blood groups. Blood group phenotypic frequencies were expressed in percentage and allele frequencies estimated under the assumption of Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. ABO-Rh blood groups were typed on the spot by the open-slide agglutination method using commercial antisera (Biotech Laboratories Ltd, Ipswich, Suffolk, UK) as per the manufacturer’s instruction.ĭata entered into Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, checked for correctness and analyzed. Following an interview to capture socio-demographic parameters blood samples were drawn. Consenting patients (for minors parental consent was obtained) visiting the hospital between November and December 2013 were included in the survey. Nuer and Anuak are the largest native ethnic groups in Gambella and settlers of various ethnic origins who moved from all over Ethiopia are considered as ‘highlanders’. The study was conducted at Gambella hospital in Gambella Town, southwestern Ethiopia, about 777 km from Addis Ababa. Thus, in this study the frequency distribution of these blood groups was determined among patients attending Gambella hospital, southwestern Ethiopia. In Ethiopia, the distribution of the ABO-Rh blood group system is little explored. Among infectious diseases, the association of malaria with the ABO blood group is increasingly being recognized following the initial suggestion 48 years back. The ABO blood group system is known to be associated with diverse forms of cancer such as that of skin, pancreace, epithelial ovarian and gastric cancer, and other non-communicable diseases like ischaemic heart disease and diabetes mellitus. It is, therefore, imperative to have a reliable and up-to-date data on the distribution of these blood groups in various populations.įurther, the ABO blood system is widely being studied in relation to susceptibility to infectious as well as non-infectious diseases in different human populations. Variation of ABO gene distribution with socio-economic status was also demonstrated in England. Apart from the spatial and ethnic/racial variations, the ABO-Rh blood group frequencies may change temporally in a single population. The distribution of the ABO-Rh blood group varies markedly in different races and ethnic groups in different parts of the world. Particularly, identification of the Rh system is important to avoid a potential risk of erythroblastosis fetalis. Knowledge of distribution of ABO-Rh blood group is helpful for effective management of blood banks and safe blood transfusion services. They are routinely screened in transfusion and transplantation, pregnancy, forensics, paternity testing and legal medicine. These blood group systems have also got vital clinical and practical significance. The ABO and Rh blood group antigens are investigated for understanding human inheritance and migration patterns. Among these, the ABO and Rhesus (Rh(D)) are the most important systems. While the ABO blood group distribution is similar to previous reports, the Rh(D) frequency is much higher than what was reported so far for Ethiopia and continental Africa.Ĭurrently there are about 700 human blood group antigens organized into 35 systems. The proportion of participants devoid of the Rh factor was 19.37%. However, blood type ‘A’ was the most frequent (44.07%) blood group among the ‘highlanders’ and 50.42% of Nilotic natives had type ‘O’. ABO-Rh(D) blood groups were typed by agglutination, open-slide test method, using commercial antisera (Biotech laboratories Ltd, Ipswich, Suffolk, UK). The other group consisted of natives (Nilotics) to the locality (n = 238). Those who originally moved from different parts of Ethiopia and currently residing in Gambella are named ‘highlanders’ (n = 211). The patients were grouped into two broad categories. MethodsĪ cross-sectional study was conducted between November and December 2013 (N = 449). This study was, therefore, designed to determine the ABO-Rh(D) blood group distribution among patients attending Gambella hospital, southwestern Ethiopia. However, the distribution of these blood systems among Ethiopians in general is little explored. Knowledge of the distribution of ABO-Rh(D) blood groups in a locality is vital for safe blood services.
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