Iron State In Thalassemia Trait

Objectives:We studied the iron state and iron metabolism of thalassemic trait adults by measuring the serum iron,serum ferritin and serum transferrin receptor(sTfR) levels,which was in expectation of providing both empirical and theoretical evidence on preventing these patients from the potential dangerousness of possibly iron overload.Methods:418 persons who were screened from health examination in Zhuhai People's Hospital from October 2006 to February 2007 were studied,devided into two groups:183 healthy adults made up the reference group,235 adults with thalassemia trait made up the case group,the hemoglobin,erythrocyte count,mean corpuscular volume and red blood cell volume distribution width were determined by the automated hematology analyzer offered by American Beckman company,serum iron was measured by the synchronic and automated biochemistry analyzer offered by American Beckman company,serum ferritin was examined by radioimmunoassay,single tube quantitative method was used to analyze the erythrocyte osmotic fragility of the case group.Haemoglobin electrophoresis was also performed in the case group using agarose electrophoresis method.Then we measured sTfR levels of 30 patients in the case group and 18 healthy adults in the reference group by Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay(ELISA).Results:1.serum iron:the case group:21.02±5.99umol/L,the reference group:16.06±5.10umol/L,serum iron level was significantly higher in thalassemic trait adults than the control (P-value is less than 0.01);2.serum ferritin:the case group:297.34±199.88 ug/L,the reference group:170.69±118.09ug/L,serum ferritin level was significantly higher in thalassemic trait adults compared with the control(P-value is less than 0.01);3.serum iron and serum ferritin levels in bothα-thalassemia trait andβ-thalassemia trait were significantly higher compared with the control(P-value is less than 0.01),while either serum iron or serum ferritin level was not significantly different betweenα-thalassemic trait andβ-thalassemic trait adults(P-value is more than 0.05).4.235 thalassemic trait adults can be devided into five groups according to their difference in age:20～30 years old,31～35 years old,36～40 years old,41～45 years old,≥46 years old group,either serum iron or serum ferritin level among all of these age groups was not significantly different(P-value is more than 0.05);5.Both serum iron and serum ferritin levels were significantly higher in male thalassemic trait adults than female patients,Both serum iron and serum ferritin levels were significantly higher in male and female thalassemic trait adults compared with the corresponding controls(P-value is less than 0.01).6.sTfR:the case group is 25.71±5.33nmol/L,the reference group is 18.72±4.86nmol/L,sTfR was significantly higher in thalassemic trait adults than the control(P-value is less than 0.01).Conclusion:1.The iron load in thalassemic trait adults was significantly higher compared with the healthy adults,both male and female thalassemic trait adults have iron overload in their bodies.Thalassemic trait adults should monitor their iron state nearly and prevent iron overload with complications as soon as possible;Thalassemic trait adults should avoid these factors which can cause iron overload,such as some food,medicine or accompanied with some other desease.2. Thalassemic trait adults have higher sTfR level although the iron state has been increased,it suggests that sTfR level in thalassemic trait adults is possibly mainly determined by the bone marrow erythroid expansion and activity.