Treatment of Thalasseamia

Treatment for Thalasseamia Major

Blood Transfusions – 2-3 weekly transfusions. These transfusions eliminate the complications of anemia and compensatory bone marrow expansion. Frequent transfusions result in an inexorable accumulation of tissue iron, if this iron is not removed the consequence is fatal. Deferoxamine mesylate is used as an iron-chelating agent that binds to the excess iron and is excreted through the urine and faeses. Chelators are administered orally, intramuscularly or intravenously and are required daily. The injections take approximately 10 hours and the infusion pump is generally worn overnight.
Tablet - deferasirox
Splenectomy – if the patients yearly transfusion requirements exceed 200ml packed cells per kilogram body weight, the removal of the spleen significantly diminishes red blood cell requirements and iron accumulation. Hypersplenism may be avoided by early and regular transfusion.
Bone Marrow Transplant – replacing affected bone marrow with healthy donated bone marrow, which will begin producing healthy blood cells.
Cord Blood Transfusion – involves testing the Human Lymphocyte Antigen (HLA) type of a foetus that does not have thalasseamia, carried by a mother than has a child with thalasseamia. If the HLA of the foetus matches that of the older sibling, it is possible to take a sample of blood from the foetus’s umbilical cord that can be used for transfusion. The blood is known as cord blood, and it is useful because it is a rich source of stem cells. These cells can be used instead of bone marrow because they are also capable of producing

sources - www.bloodjournal.org
- http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk
- www.gsnv.org.au/pages/supportGroups/tsv
- www.health-care-articles.info/diseases/thalassaemia