Prevalence of Glucose -6- Phosphate Dehydrogenase (G6PD) Deficiency (Favism) in Thamar Province-Republic of Yemen

Background: Glucose-6-Phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency is an Xlinked recessive disorder expressed mostly in males. Prevalence of G6PD deficiency varies in different parts of the world’s according to ethnic variation. The incidence varies among different countries in the world and surveys report rates of less than 1% to 35%. The prevalence of G6PD deficiency in the Arab world has variously been reported range from 1 to 65 %. Objectives: To study the prevalence of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency among adult individuals and the severity of the enzyme deficiency according to the WHO classification. Methodology: The study included 90 adult individuals (68 males & 22 females) included in the study. All sample tested for the complete blood cells count (CBC). Quantitative estimation of G6PD enzyme activity was performed by using a commercially available kits. Results: A 13/90 subjects studied (14.5%) have G6PD deficiency and 7/ 13 (53.8 %) have WHO class-II enzyme variant, 6 / 13 (46.2%) were of class-III variant and no class-V variant detected. Conclusions: Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase deficiency is a commonly occurred type of the inherited red blood cell enzymopathy with predominance of the Mediterranean variant (WHO class-II).