BJP Handbook for Psychiatric Trainees
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Psychiatric Bulletin Advances in Psychiatric Treatment All RCPsych Journals
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

The British Journal of Psychiatry (1967) 113: 1309-1315. doi: 10.1192/bjp.113.504.1309
© 1967 The Royal College of Psychiatrists
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Submit an eLetter
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by MASTERS, A. B.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow Articles by MASTERS, A. B.

The Distribution of Blood Groups in Psychiatric Illness

A. B. MASTERS M.B., Ch.B., D.P.M.1

1 Assistant Psychiatrist, Whittingham Hospital, Preston, Lancashire

This paper describes an investigation into the frequency of a wide range of blood groups in a series of 500 patients admitted to hospital with some form of mental illness.

Previous work has suggested a possible association between blood group O and manic-depressive psychosis. An analysis of the present data adds some support for such an association. The numbers are small, but the adoption of strict diagnostic criteria has ensured a more homogeneous group of patients. The possibility of a causal effect is considered to be most unlikely. Racial stratification may be the answer, but further studies from different regions of the world, including the collection of sibship data, will be necessary before any definite conclusions can be reached. Other possibilities considered are a pleiotropic effect of blood group genes, and a maternal effect.

A word of warning is sounded about the over-eager acceptance in this field of the usual 5 per cent. and 1 per cent. levels of significance. Adopting this more cautious approach, the general conclusion is that there is no significant correlation between the ABO, MN, Rhesus and Kell blood groups and psychiatric disorders. However, there is the suggestion of an increased incidence of group O in manic-depressive psychosis, and further research on this possible association might be worth while.

Submitted on November 15, 1966




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Hum Mol GenetHome page
J. M. Ekholm, T. Kieseppa, T. Hiekkalinna, T. Partonen, T. Paunio, M. Perola, J. Ekelund, J. Lonnqvist, P. Pekkarinen-Ijas, and L. Peltonen
Evidence of susceptibility loci on 4q32 and 16p12 for bipolar disorder
Hum. Mol. Genet., August 1, 2003; 12(15): 1907 - 1915.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Psychiatric Bulletin Advances in Psychiatric Treatment All RCPsych Journals
Copyright © 1967 The Royal College of Psychiatrists.