Beta thalassemia, characterized by the deficiency or the absence of beta globulin production, is the most widespread inherited disorder in the world and is also common in Turkey. To determine the prevalence of carriers for beta thalassemia, we screened the couples before their marriage. For this aim, from 1994 to 1999, a total of 14.200 people were screened. The complete blood count and red blo...

Background: Disorders with a markedly slowed rate of globin chain synthesis are referred to as thalassemia. Hemoglobinopathy is word used describe diseases that cause structurally aberrant hemoglobin. Iron deficiency seen in beta-thalassemia minor, which may change the typically increased HbA2 levels. According World Health Organization (WHO) statistics, 7% global population carries hemoglobin ...

I enjoyed reading Bilgen et al.’s case report, The effect of HBB: (c*+96T>C (3’UTR+1570 T>C) on the mild β-thalassemia intermedia pheonotype, in the recent issue of the Journal (2011; 28: 219-222). I congratulate the authors for exploring at the molecular level at least one of the thalassemia minima that fits well with the present clinical thalassemia nomenclature. Based on their clinical descr...

OBJECTIVES The term beta-thalassemia includes all those hereditary disturbances of the hemoglobin (Hb), transferred trough a recessive autosomal mechanism, due to a reduced or else defective synthesis of beta globin sequences. The aim of this paper is to highlight as sometimes the only biochemical diagnosis is not exhaustive and a molecular diagnostic widening is necessary to detect the genetic...

BACKGROUND The β-thalassemia syndrome is a genetically inherited commonly encountered hematological disorder in the state of Orissa. It causes high degree of morbidity, mortality and fetal wastage in the poor vulnerable people. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES There is an equal probability (50% chance) in every singleton pregnancy that a carrier parent of β-thalassemia major would either bear normal or ca...

OBJECTIVE The objective was to evaluate the beta-globin gene mutations and polymorphisms in cell-free fetal DNA in the early first trimester (7-9th weeks' gestation) for the prediction of thalassemia risk at chorionic villous sampling (CVS). STUDY DESIGN Beta-globin gene mutations and polymorphisms were analyzed in 97 carrier families and 100 control couples. Using conventional PCR-DGGE we ca...

In order to determine the contribution of alpha-thalassemia to microcytosis and hypochromia, 339 adult outpatients seen at Unicamp University Hospital (with the exception of the Clinical Hematology outpatient clinics), who showed normal hemoglobin (Hb) levels and reduced mean corpuscular volume and mean corpuscular hemoglobin, were analyzed. Ninety-eight were Blacks (28.9%) and 241 were Caucasi...

Thalassemia is the name of a group of genetic, inherited disorders of the blood. More specifically, it is a disorder of the hemoglobin molecule inside the red blood cells. According to World health Organization (WHO), there are about 3% beta-thalassemia carrier and about 4% Hb E/beta-thalassemia carrier in Bangladesh. Our objective is to identify the prevalence of beta-thalassemia in our adoles...

In Yemen, the prevalence of sickle cell trait and β-thalassemia trait are high. The aim of this premarital program is to identify sickle cell and thalassemia carrier couples in Yemen before completing marriages proposal, in order to prevent affected birth. This can be achieved by applying a low-cost premarital screening program using simple blood tests compatible with the limited health resourc...

OBJECTIVES Iran is considered as one of the high-prevalence areas for β-thalassemia with a rate of about 10% carrier frequency. Molecular diagnosis of the disease is performed both by direct sequencing and indirectly by the use of polymorphic markers present in the beta globin gene cluster. However, to date there is no reliable information on the application of the markers in the Iranian popula...