Aims: Beta thalassemia is the most common monogenic hereditary hemoglobin disorder, which poses a major health burden to Sri-Lanka. Regular transfusions of erythrocytes required for survival of these patients lead to inevitable iron overload, which is manifested, by elevated serum ferritin levels. Progressive deposition of iron leads to dysfunction and failure of the major organs. The aim of this study was to evaluate the iron overload of the beta thalassemia major patients in one of the thalassemia centres in Sri Lanka and to find its effect on growth status of the patients.
Methods: The study included forty patients with confirmed diagnosis of beta thalassemia major, undergoing any chelation treatment. The mean age of the study group was 10.97±5.9 years with a range of 2–20 years. The patients were interviewed for the socio-demographic variables and their medical histories were obtained from the hospital files. Serum ferritin concentration, height and weight of the patients were measured and body mass index (BMI) was calculated.
Results: The mean serum ferritin concentration was 2992.2±1575.35 ng/ml which showed a significant correlation with age and duration of blood transfusion. The mean z-score for height was -2.3±1.06 and 50% of the patients were stunted. The mean z-score for BMI was -1.32±1.28 and 35% of the patients were wasted. Both height and BMI had no significant correlation with iron overload of the patients.
Conclusion: Iron overload and growth retardation were common in beta thalassemia major patients of the treatment center evaluated in this study in Sri Lanka. However, there was no significant relationship between physical growth and iron overload.