Mental Health of Adolescents with Thalassemia Major Visiting Kerman Specific Diseases Center

Beta Thalassemia is defined as a genetic disorder of globulin synthesis in which life can only be sustained by regular blood transfusion and Desferal injections. Since there are few studies concerning psychological and social adjustment of Thalassemia patients, this study aimed to assess the mental health status of adolescents with major Thalassemia visiting Kerman Specific Diseases Center during March 2006 to March 2007. This cross-sectional study was performed on 250 thalassemic adolescents. The data collection instrument was the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) including 28 questions in four aspects of physical symptoms, anxiety, social dysfunction and depression. Data were analyzed through SPSS13 and using Chi-square test. All patients had general health impairment. Among the four aspects evaluated, the maximum and minimum means were respectively functional disorder (14.6±4.4) and anxiety (13.5±3.4). In all four aspects, the maximum and minimum scores were respectively 7 and 28; and the percent of healthy subjects was much lower than the percent of those with mental disorders. Age group showed no significant relationship with disorder in any of the four evaluated aspects. Duo to the high prevalence of mental disorders in thalassemic patient's more attention to the mental health of these patients and implementing measures for prevention of mental health disorders is recommended.