English

Abstract

Knowledge of distribution of ABO and Rh blood groups is helpful for effective management of blood banks and safe blood transfusion services. The prevalence of these blood groups varies worldwide and may not be found in equal numbers even among ethnic groups. The aim of this study was to find out the distribution of ABO and Rh (D) blood groups among students attending high schools in Bote town, Ethiopia from March–April 2017. Blood samples were taken from 392 (N = 775) volunteer students from finger-pricks and blood groups were determined on open slide by haemagglutination method using commercially available anti-sera A, B, and Rh (D). Descriptive statistics was used to calculate percentage frequencies of blood phenotype. The genotypic and allelic frequencies of the blood groups were calculated from the observed phenotypes under the assumption of Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. In the ABO system, type O was the most prevalent (41.3%) followed by A (31.9%), B (21.4%) and AB the least (5.4%), in the pattern O > A > B > AB. Most of the students were found to be Rh+ (92.86%). Regarding the combined ABO/Rh blood groups, O+ was the most prevalent (38%), A+ (30%), B+ (20%) and AB+ (5%) and O- was also the most frequent (3%) among Rh-negative (Rh-) students. The allelic frequencies of O (r), A (p) and B (q), D and d were 0.64, 0.21, 0.15, 0.73 and 0.27, respectively. Genotypic frequency of IOIO was the most (0.413) frequent while that of IBIB was the least (0.021) while DD and dd were 53.3 and 7.3, respectively. The observed and expected frequencies of individuals having ABO and Rh blood were not significantly different in both blood systems (goodness-of-fit χ2 for ABO = 0.4729, df = 3 and χ2 for Rh = 0.0145, df = 1; P < 0.05). The present study gives vital information regarding the management of blood bank and transfusion services in the community. Key words: Blood alleles, agglutination, blood bank, blood transfusion, prevalence, Rhesus factor.