The risk of being infected by parvovirus is elevated in those people who have blood group Rh(D), according to a study published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases.
Fifth disease is a viral disease caused by parvovirus. Most often, school-age children are affected with common symptoms such as red blotches on the cheeks that can also spread to the arms and legs. Adults can become infected, but many do not show any symptoms.
In a new study, researchers demonstrated that the risk of contracting the disease is elevated if the person belongs to the blood group Rh(D).
More than 160,000 blood donors in Germany were screened for parvovirus between 2015 and 2018. A total of 22 people were infected with the virus and all belonged to the blood group Rh(D).
“It is a significant finding that has not yet been described that could mean that Rh(D) is important when the virus enters the host cell and also may be a new, as of yet unidentified cellular receptor for the virus,” said Rasmus Gustafsson, affiliated researcher at the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet.
The researchers were also able to see women as well as people aged 31 to 40 have an increased risk of infection.
“At that age, there are usually toddlers around. We already know that young children get infected in preschool and then infect their parents. So, the age and gender distribution can be a reflection of the fact that women to a greater extent than men work in the care professions and look after children,” said Gustafsson.
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