Assessment of Serum Ferritin Level in Thalassemia Major Patients Receiving Deferasirox in Comparison with Other Iron Chelators

Although blood transfusion is the most important method to control thalassemia major, this method leads to the iron accumulation in various tissues and organs of patients. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of Deferasirox with new formulations and other iron chelator drugs on serum ferritin level and gastrointestinal effects in thalassemia major patients in thalassemia center of Kashan University of Medical Sciences during a two-year period.

This semi-experimental study was performed on 45 thalassemia patients. In 2018, these patients were treated with a drug other than Defrasirox with a new formulation. In 2018, all patients were treated with the new Defrasirox. Serum ferritin level was measured once every three months, compared with the previous year, and analyzed by Kolmogorov smirnov, Anova and SPSS 19.

In 2018 and 2019, there was no significant difference in terms of serum ferritin level. In 2019, with the use of the new drug Deferasirox, a total of 11.1% of patients have suffered from complications of drug use, which is a significant decrease compared to the previous year (p = 0.004).

The effect of the Deferasirox with new formulation in reducing serum ferritin level in patients with thalassemia major is similar to previous drugs (old Deferasirox, deferiprone and desferrioxamine). However, patients recieving this drug have less gastrointestinal effects such as pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. At the same time, the satisfaction with the drug has increased significantly.