Thalassemia Minor Pregnancy Mother Thalassemia Minor + Father Normal Result = 80% - Normal Child 10% - No child 07% - Thalassemia Minor Child 03% - Thalassemia Major Child

Thalassemia Minor

Thalassemia Minor
Thalassemia is a genetic disease.

Thalassemia Major is present at birth, and the child cannot outgrow it.

Thalassemia cannot be 'contracted'. It is not infectious or contagious.

Both parents need to have Thalassemia trait in order for the child to contract it.

If a person with a Thalassemia trait marries another such person, the offspring has a 25% chance of developing full blown Thalassemia.

If only one parent has the trait, the trait may be passed on to the child.

A person with a Thalassemia trait shows no symptoms except perhaps for anaemia. Iron supplements don't help, and should not be taken.

Having a Thalassemia trait does not make a person susceptible to any diseases. This trait does not harm the person in any way, and the person can live a perfectly normal life without even being aware that he has a Thalassemia trait.

A Thalassemia trait will NOT develop into the full blown disease at any stage in life.

Thalassemia Minor

-What is the difference between thalassemia minor and major?

There are two forms of beta thalassemia. They are thalassemia minor and thalassemia major (which is also called Cooley's anemia).

Thalassemia minor: The individual with thalassemia minor has only one copy of the beta thalassemia gene (together with one perfectly normal beta-chain gene). The person is said to be heterozygous for beta thalassemia.

Persons with thalassemia minor have (at most) mild anemia (with slight lowering of the hemoglobin level in the blood). This situation can very closely resemble that with mild iron-deficiency anemia. However, persons with thalassemia minor have a normal blood iron level (unless they have are iron deficient for other reasons). No treatment is necessary for thalassemia minor. In particular, iron is neither necessary nor advised.

Thalassemia Minor often coexists with other diseases such as asthma, and mood disorders

don't worry about it b'couse 1 in 4 people have chances of baby it means 25%you have chance.
In Thalassemia minor, the hemoglobin genes are inherited during conception, one from the mother (egg) and one from the father (sperm). People with a Thalassemia trait in one gene are known as carriers or are said to have Thalassemia minor. The only way to know if you carry the Thalassemia trait is to have a special blood test called hemoglobin electrophoresis which can identify the gene. The carriers of Thalassemia minor become anemic or slightly anemic.

If you, your parents, or ancestors are from 'Thalassemia regions' (identified in What is Thal), request a test from your doctor. It is vitally important to identify yourself as a possible carrier of Thalassemia minor. Possessing the Thalassemia minor trait gives you a 25%, (1 in 4) chance of having a baby with Thalassemia major, providing that both parents of the child are both carriers of the disorder. Increased awareness is the key to prevention.

The mainstay of managing these cases is repeated blood transfusions. An attempt should be made to maintain hemoglobin level above 10-12 g/dL (by hyper transfusion) to ensure active life and adequate growth. Group and type specific, fresh, triple saline washed, packed red cell transfusions are the most desired form of component therapy. These are to be transfused at the rate of 10-15 ml/kg every 2 to 3 weeks. Blood transfusions may result in hemolytic or febrile reactions, transmission of viral infections (HIV1 & 2, Hepatitis B and C, Cytomegalovirus) and iron overload. Routine donor screening for these viral infections is a must. All thalassemics should be vaccinated with Hepatitis B vaccine before starting transfusions. Iron overload results in multiple organ dysfunction due to hemosiderosis and hemochromatosis. Chronic anemia itself is a potent stimulator of iron absorption from the gut. Iron overload can be reduced by regular chelation therapy and reducing iron absorption by keeping the hemoglobin levels high.
Neocyte transfusion
Special cell separators are available for obtaining younger cells with longer life span (neocytes). Infusion of these cells instead of the whole blood increases interval between two transfusions and decreases the transfusion requirement and hence the iron load. Simultaneous removal of older cells (gerocytes) from patient’s circulation by pheresis technique reduces iron load considerably. However, these procedurs are cumbersome, costly and need a lot of expertise.

At present only desferrioxamine is available as iron chelating agent in parenteral form. It should be given as continuous subcutaneous infusion in the dose of 25-50 mg/kg/day over a period of 8-12 hours, during the night, by specially designed microinfusion pumps, (at least 5-6 nights per week). The chelation should start by 12-14th transfusion. 100 mg of vitamin C daily should be concurrently administered. Overdose of desferrioxamine results in growth retardation, visual and auditory toxicity. Cataracts have been noted in some children on long term desferrioxamine therapy. Deferiprone (DFP) is an effective oral iron chelating agent with minimal toxicity. It is given in a dose of 75 mg/kg/day in 2-4 divided doses. The most common side-effect is arthropathy. Other oral chelators include pyridoxine hydrazine, HBED and desferrothiocine. These are still under trials.
Splenectomy is recommended in cases when the transfusion requirement exceeds 250 ml/kg/year of packed red cells. The decision should be deferred as far as possible and if required delayed beyond the age of five years.