https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28806577

Blood Cells Mol Dis. 2017 Aug 5;66:24-30. doi: 10.1016/j.bcmd.2017.08.002. [Epub ahead of print]
Krittayaphong R1, Viprakasit V2, Saiviroonporn P3, Siritanaratkul N4, Siripornpitak S5, Meekaewkunchorn A6, Kirawittaya T6, Sripornsawan P7, Jetsrisuparb A8, Srinakarin J9, Wong P10, Phalakornkul N11, Sinlapamongkolkul P12, Wood J13.

Abstract

Prevalence of cardiac and liver iron overload in patients with thalassemia in real-world practice may vary among different regions especially in the era of widely-used iron chelation therapy. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of cardiac and liver iron overload in and the management patterns of patients with thalassemia in real-world practice in Thailand. We established a multicenter registry for patients with thalassemia who underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as part of their clinical evaluation. All enrolled patients underwent cardiac and liver MRI for assessment of iron overload. There were a total of 405 patients enrolled in this study. The mean age of patients was 18.8±12.5years and 46.7% were male. Two hundred ninety-six (73.1%) of patients received regular blood transfusion. Prevalence of cardiac iron overload (CIO) and liver iron overload (LIO) was 5.2% and 56.8%, respectively. Independent predictors for iron overload from laboratory information were serum ferritin and transaminase for both CIO and LIO. Serum ferritin can be used as a screening tool to rule-out CIO and to diagnose LIO. Iron chelation therapy was given in 74.6%; 15.3% as a combination therapy.