Prospective study of ABO blood type and the risk of pulmonary embolism in two large cohort studies

Brian M. Wolpin; Christopher Kabrhel; Raphaëlle Varraso; Peter Kraft; Eric B. Rimm; Samuel Z. Goldhaber; Carlos A. Camargo Jr; Charles S. Fuchs

doi:10.1160/TH10-05-0312

Thrombosis and Haemostasis, Table of Contents

Thromb Haemost 2010; 104(05): 962-971
DOI: 10.1160/TH10-05-0312

Blood Coagulation, Fibrinolysis and Cellular Haemostasis

Schattauer GmbH

Prospective study of ABO blood type and the risk of pulmonary embolism in two large cohort studies

Authors

Brian M. Wolpin

¹Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

²Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusets, USA
Christopher Kabrhel

³Department of Emergency Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Raphaëlle Varraso

⁴INSERM, U780, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Villejuif, France

⁵Univ. Paris-Sud, Villejuif, France
Peter Kraft

⁶Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Eric B. Rimm

⁶Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

⁷Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

⁸Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Samuel Z. Goldhaber

⁹Cardiovascular Division, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Carlos A. Camargo Jr

³Department of Emergency Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

⁶Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

⁸Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Charles S. Fuchs

¹Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

²Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusets, USA

⁸Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Abstract

Summary

Prior studies have suggested an association of ABO blood type and the risk of venous thromboembolism; however, most studies were retrospective and lacked important covariates or validated endpoints. Moreover, risk estimates varied widely across studies. Therefore, we prospectively examined the association of blood type and the risk of incident pulmonary embolism (PE) in two large cohort studies, the Nurses’ Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-up Study. During 1,010,378 person-years of follow-up among 77,025 women and 30,105 men, 499 participants developed PE. Compared to those with O-blood type, participants with non-O blood type had multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HR) of 1.86 (95% CI, 1.35–2.57) for idiopathic PE, 1.29 (95% CI, 1.03–1.62) for non-idiopathic PE, and 1.46 (95% CI, 1.22–1.76) for any PE. Hazard ratios were similar for participants with blood types A, B, and AB. Age-adjusted absolute rates of idiopathic PE over 10 years of follow-up differed by blood type: 0.11% for O, 0.20% for A, 0.19% for AB, and 0.21% for B. For idiopathic PE, the population attributable fraction was 33% for inheritance of non-O blood type. Among past and current smokers, participants with non-O vs. O-blood type had a HR for idiopathic PE of 2.56 (95% CI, 1.61–4.08). Among never smokers, the HR for idiopathic PE was 1.30 (95% CI, 0.82–2.05; Pinteraction=0.04). In two large, prospective cohorts, ABO blood type was significantly associated with the risk of idiopathic and non-idiopathic PE, with even greater risk for idiopathic PE among current and past smokers with non-O blood type.

Keywords

Pulmonary embolism - inherited coagulation disorders - epidemiological studies

Full Text

References

References
1 Park B, Messina L, Dargon P. et al. Recent trends in clinical outcomes and resource utilization for pulmonary embolism in the United States: findings from the nationwide inpatient sample.. Chest 2009; 136: 983-990.
2 US Department of Health and Human Services.. Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Prevent Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism. 2008 http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/topics/deepvein/calltoaction/call-to-action-on-dvt-2008.pdf – Accessed October 11, 2009.
3 Heit JA. Venous thromboembolism: disease burden, outcomes and risk factors.. J Thromb Haemost 2005; 03: 1611-1617.
4 Geerts WH, Bergqvist D, Pineo GF. et al. Prevention of venous thromboembolism: American College of Chest Physicians Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines (8th Edition).. Chest 2008; 133: 381S-453S.
5 Folsom AR, Cushman M, Tsai MY. et al. A prospective study of venous thromboembolism in relation to factor V Leiden and related factors.. Blood 2002; 99: 2720-2725.
6 Poort SR, Rosendaal FR, Reitsma PH. et al. A common genetic variation in the 3‘-untranslated region of the prothrombin gene is associated with elevated plasma prothrombin levels and an increase in venous thrombosis.. Blood 1996; 88: 3698-3703.
7 Wu O, Bayoumi N, Vickers MA. et al. ABO(H) blood groups and vascular disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.. J Thromb Haemost 2008; 06: 62-69.
8 Colditz GA, Hankinson SE. The Nurses’ Health Study: lifestyle and health among women.. Nat Rev Cancer 2005; 05: 388-396.
9 Wolpin BM, Chan AT, Hartge P. et al. ABO blood group and the risk of pancreatic cancer.. J Natl Cancer Inst 2009; 101: 424-431.
10 Wolpin BM, Kraft P, Gross M. et al. Pancreatic Cancer Risk and ABO Blood Group Alleles: Results from the Pancreatic Cancer Cohort Consortium.. Cancer Res 2010; 70: 1015-1023.
11 Chasan-Taber S, Rimm EB, Stampfer MJ. et al. Reproducibility and validity of a self-administered physical activity questionnaire for male health professionals.. Epidemiology 1996; 07: 81-86.
12 Wolf AM, Hunter DJ, Colditz GA. et al. Reproducibility and validity of a self-administered physical activity questionnaire.. Int J Epidemiol 1994; 23: 991-999.
13 Kabrhel C, Varraso R, Goldhaber SZ, Rimm EB, Camargo CA. Prospective study of BMI and the risk of pulmonary embolism in women.. Obesity (Silver Spring) 2009; 17: 2040-2046.
14 Kaplan EL, Meier P. Nonparametric estimation from incomplete observations.. J Am Stat Assoc 1958; 53: 457-481.
15 Rockhill B, Newman B, Weinberg C. Use and misuse of population attributable fractions.. Am J Public Health 1998; 88: 15-19.
16 Jick H, Slone D, Westerholm B. et al. Venous thromboembolic disease and ABO blood type. A cooperative study.. Lancet 1969; 01: 539-542.
17 Talbot S, Wakley EJ, Ryrie D. et al. ABO blood-groups and venous thromboembolic disease.. Lancet 1970; 01: 1257-1259.
18 Wautrecht JC, Galle C, Motte S. et al. The role of ABO blood groups in the incidence of deep vein thrombosis.. Thromb Haemost 1998; 79: 688-689.
19 Mercier B, Oger E, Le Gal G. et al. Phenotypic but not allelic ABO blood group association with risk of venous thrombosis.. Thromb Haemost 2005; 93: 388-389.
20 Ohira T, Cushman M, Tsai MY. et al. ABO blood group, other risk factors and incidence of venous thromboembolism: the Longitudinal Investigation of Thromboembolism Etiology (LITE).. J Thromb Haemost 2007; 05: 1455-1461.
21 Cushman M, Tsai AW, White RH. et al. Deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in two cohorts: the longitudinal investigation of thromboembolism etiology.. Am J Med 2004; 117: 19-25.
22 Severinsen MT, Kristensen SR, Johnsen SP. et al. Anthropometry, body fat, and venous thromboembolism: a Danish follow-up study.. Circulation 2009; 120: 1850-1857.
23 Borch KH, Braekkan SK, Mathiesen EB. et al. Anthropometric measures of obesity and risk of venous thromboembolism: the Tromso study.. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 2010; 30: 121-127.
24 Nossent AY, Van Marion V, Van Tilburg NH. et al. von Willebrand factor and its propeptide: the influence of secretion and clearance on protein levels and the risk of venous thrombosis.. J Thromb Haemost 2006; 04: 2556-2562.
25 Gallinaro L, Cattini MG, Sztukowska M. et al. A shorter von Willebrand factor survival in O blood group subjects explains how ABO determinants influence plasma von Willebrand factor.. Blood 2008; 111: 3540-3545.
26 Souto JC, Almasy L, Soria JM. et al. Genome-wide linkage analysis of von Wille-brand factor plasma levels: results from the GAIT project.. Thromb Haemost 2003; 89: 468-474.
27 Gill JC, Endres-Brooks J, Bauer PJ. et al. The effect of ABO blood group on the diagnosis of von Willebrand disease.. Blood 1987; 69: 1691-1695.
28 Tsai AW, Cushman M, Rosamond WD. et al. Coagulation factors, inflammation markers, and venous thromboembolism: the longitudinal investigation of thromboembolism etiology (LITE).. Am J Med 2002; 113: 636-642.
29 Morelli VM, de Visser MC, van Tilburg NH. et al. ABO blood group genotypes, plasma von Willebrand factor levels and loading of von Willebrand factor with A and B antigens.. Thromb Haemost 2007; 97: 534-541.
30 Frazer KA, Murray SS, Schork NJ. et al. Human genetic variation and its contribution to complex traits.. Nat Rev Genet 2009; 10: 241-251.
31 Melzer D, Perry JR, Hernandez D. et al. A genome-wide association study identifies protein quantitative trait loci (pQTLs).. PLoS Genet 2008; 04: e1000072.
32 Pare G, Chasman DI, Kellogg M. et al. Novel association of ABO histo-blood group antigen with soluble ICAM-1: results of a genome-wide association study of 6,578 women.. PLoS Genet 2008; 04: e1000118.
33 Paterson AD, Lopes-Virella MF, Waggott D. et al. Genome-wide association identifies the ABO blood group as a major locus associated with serum levels of soluble E-selectin.. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 2009; 29: 1958-1967.
34 Qi L, Cornelis MC, Kraft P. et al. Genetic variants in ABO blood group region, plasma soluble E-selectin levels and risk of type 2 diabetes.. Hum Mol Genet 2010; 19: 1856-1862.
35 Barbalic M, Dupuis J, Dehghan A. et al. Large-scale genomic studies reveal central role of ABO in sP-selectin and sICAM-1 levels.. Hum Mol Genet 2010; 19: 1863-1872.
36 Ley K, Laudanna C, Cybulsky MI. et al. Getting to the site of inflammation: the leukocyte adhesion cascade updated.. Nat Rev Immunol 2007; 07: 678-689.
37 Zarbock A, Polanowska-Grabowska RK, Ley K. Platelet-neutrophil-interactions: linking hemostasis and inflammation.. Blood Rev 2007; 21: 99-111.
38 Kansas GS. Selectins and their ligands: current concepts and controversies.. Blood 1996; 88: 3259-3287.
39 Rieckmann P, Michel U, Albrecht M. et al. Soluble forms of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) block lymphocyte attachment to cerebral endothelial cells.. J Neuroimmunol 1995; 60: 9-15.
40 Ridker PM, Hennekens CH, Roitman-Johnson B. et al. Plasma concentration of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1 and risks of future myocardial infarction in apparently healthy men.. Lancet 1998; 351: 88-92.
41 Meigs JB, Hu FB, Rifai N, Manson JE. Biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction and risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus.. J Am Med Assoc 2004; 291: 1978-1986.
42 Benowitz NL. Cigarette smoking and cardiovascular disease: pathophysiology and implications for treatment.. Prog Cardiovasc Dis 2003; 46: 91-111.
43 Tregouet DA, Heath S, Saut N. et al. Common susceptibility alleles are unlikely to contribute as strongly as the FV and ABO loci to VTE risk: results from a GWAS approach.. Blood 2009; 113: 5298-5303.
44 Wiggins KL, Smith NL, Glazer NL. et al. ABO genotype and risk of thrombotic events and hemorrhagic stroke.. J Thromb Haemost 2009; 07: 263-269.
45 Tirado I, Mateo J, Soria JM. et al. The ABO blood group genotype and factor VIII levels as independent risk factors for venous thromboembolism.. Thromb Haemost 2005; 93: 468-474.
46 Robert A, Aillaud MF, Eschwege V. et al. ABO blood group and risk of venous thrombosis in heterozygous carriers of factor V Leiden.. Thromb Haemost 2000; 83: 630-631.
47 Wacholder S, Rothman N, Caporaso N. Population stratification in epidemiologic studies of common genetic variants and cancer: quantification of bias.. J Natl Cancer Inst 2000; 92: 1151-1158.