Frequency of Pulmonary Hypertension among patients with Major Thalassemia in Sanandaj Besat Hospital, 2014-2015

  Thalassemia syndromes are hereditary disorders of alpha and beta globin band. Nowadays with appropriate treatment for this group of patients, their survival rate has significantly increased. But it has led to new complications like pulmonary hypertension that were not possible events to experience before. This study investigates the frequency of pulmonary arterial hypertension among patients with beta thalassemia.

In this descriptive study, pulmonary hypertension was evaluated by echocardiography among 50 patients with beta thalassemia who referred to our Sanandaj University Hospital, Besat during 1393-1394. Demographic and Echocardiographic findings besides lab tests were evaluated and compared between subgroups.

Among 50 participants, 8% had pulmonary hypertension. In subgroups, pulmonary hypertension was found in 15.4% of children, 5.4% of adults, 8.2% of patients with high ferritin, 11.5% of patients with thrombocytosis, and 8.2% of patients who had splenectomy.

Frequency of pulmonary hypertension among our patients is less than previously published studies with higher rate among children. Also the present study showed thrombocytosis and splenectomy as associating factors among thalassemia patients with pulmonary hypertension