High prevalence of thalassemia in migrant populations in Guangdong Province, China

BACKGROUND The objectives of this study were to estimate the prevalence of thalassemia and to analyze the need for public health services for migrant populations in different cities in Guangdong Province, China. METHODS A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 21 cities of Guangdong Province. Twenty-three types of a- and β-globin gene mutations were detected in a total of 14,230 pregnant women and 14,249 husbands. RESULTS There was a 16.45% prevalence of thalassemia among the 28,479 individuals, and the prevalences of α-, β-, and combined α-/β- thalassemia were 12.03%, 3.80%, and 0.63%, respectively. Compared with the native city residents in the province, the migrants from within the province and the immigrants from outside the province had lower prevalences of thalassemia, but the prevalence values were >11%. CONCLUSIONS The prevalence values for thalassemia gene mutations were high in all three population groups studied in Guangdong Province. The results indicate that all segments of the Guangdong population should be screened for thalassemia.