Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 August 2014
A study on the relationships between rheumatic valvular heart diseases and the ABO blood groups has been carried-out on a sample of 1,047 patients distributed, according to their origin, in 10 different areas. A first analysis, accomplished on the basis of this distribution, indicates a highly significant negative association of rheumatic valvular affections with group O, in comparison with all other blood group phenotypes, both singularly or totally considered. It is also shown that no significant heterogeneity exists among the areas. Subsequently, a similar procedure is applied by distributing all the patients according to sex, received therapy (medical or sugical) and previous anamnesis (acute rheumatic fever, repeated acute tonsillitis, no signs). This second part confirms the association of the condition with A, B and AB blood groups, but no heterogeneity is demonstrated among the different classes of the second distribution.