Thalassemia Screening in Pregnant Women at Antenatal Care Clinic Srinagarind Hospital
Keywords:
Thalassemia screening, Pregnant womenAbstract
Background and Objective : Thalassemia is one of the important problems disease in Thailand . The cost of therapy is high. Major thalassemia diseases are Hb Bart’s hydropsfetalis , β-thalassemia homozygous and β-thalassemia / Hb E diseases. The Ministry of Public Health set up the National Thalassemia Act in 2007 – 2011 . The prenatal screening of major thalassemia diseases to reduce new cases is one of the policy. Health care providers have to set up the standard system to prevention , control and treatment according to the policy. Antenatal care clinic, Srinagarind Hospital has developed service system to have husband of pregnant women who are carrier or disease come for thalassemia screening in order to find out the couple at risk for major thalassemia disease. The objective is to study the result of thalassemia screening in pregnant women at Srinagarind Hospital.
Study design : Retrospective descriptive study
Setting : Antenatal care clinic , Srinagarind Hospital , Faculty of Medicine , Khon Kaen University .
Subjects : Thalassemia screened pregnant women first presenting at antenatal care clinic, Srinagarind Hospital from 1 Junuary 2007 to 31 December 2010.
Method : The ethics committee approved the study in humans. Medical records of thalassemia screened pregnant women in antenatal care clinic and genetic counselling clinic at Srinagarind Hospital between January 2007 to December 2010 were analysed and presented. Thalassemia screeing results of pregnant women and husbands were analysed .
Result : All 2,704 new cases of pregnant women had undergone thalassemia screening (100%). 2,704 Pregnant women ( 61.5% ) were less than or equal 12 weeks gestation. 917 of 2,704 cases (33.91 %) had abnormal screening test. Following at service system , 883 husbands of 917 cases ( 96.29 % ) were notified and came to hospital for thalassemia blood checking. 46 Couples at risk for major thalassemia (1.7 %) were identified, 23 couples at risk ( 0.85% ) for Hb Bart’s hydrops fetalis , 23 couples at risk (0.85 %) for β-thalassemia / Hb E disease. After DNA analysis , only 10 pregnant women underwent prenatal diagnosis and found only 2 fetuses who had severe major thalassemia deseases. Both of pregnant women choosed termination of pregnancy.
Conclusion : Antenatal care clinic Srinagarind Hospital has service system to prevent and control of thalassemia disease. Out system accomplish the goal of the National thalassemia Act 2007 – 2012 by screening all new cases of pregnant women who came to antenatal care clinic , set up the system to have husband of these pregnant women who are carrier or disease come back to have thalassemia blood checking together with at prenatal counselling and diagnosis system.
Key wards : Thalassemia screening , Pregnant women