Thalassemia, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Treatment And Related Conditions

By Kenneth Kee

Thalassemia is an inherited disorder of the Red blood cells
It produces an abnormal Hemoglobin which makes the patient unwell
The patients usually inherit the disease from his parents
If both parents are affected, having thalassemia major child is 25 per cent

There are 2 types of Thalassemia:
Thalassemia major which is a serious severe form of anemia
Thalassemia minor in a person who has received only one thalassemia gene.
This person will have mild anemia and can pass his gene to his offspring.

Complications may be shock from loss of blood and hypotension
There may be liver and spleen damage from frequent blood transfusions
The result of complications is a shorter life span
Unless there is a successful marrow transplant

A person with thalassemia major will need blood transfusions throughout life.
At present a successful bone marrow transplant is the only hope to survive.
Thalassemia minor patients will have mild anemia
He or she will be well compared to the major thalassemia

-An original poem by Kenneth Kee

Interesting Tips about the Thalassemia

A Healthy Lifestyle

1. Take a well Balanced Diet

2. Standard treatments for patients with thalassemia major are blood transfusions, iron chelation, removal of the spleen, and bone marrow transplant.

a. Blood transfusion involves injection of red blood cells through a vein to restore normal levels of healthy red blood cells and hemoglobin. Transfusions are repeated every 4 months in patients with moderate or severe thalassemias and every 2 to 4 weeks in patients with beta thalassemia major.

b. Iron chelation is removal of excess iron from the body. A danger with blood transfusions is that they can cause iron overload, which may in turn cause heart disease. Because of this, patients who receive transfusions also require iron chelation therapy. One of two medicines is used for iron chelation: deferoxamine, a liquid given subcutaneously (under the skin), or deferasirox, a pill given by mouth. Patients who receive blood transfusions and iron chelation may have to take folic acid supplements to restore healthy red blood cells.

c. Splenectomy (removal of the spleen) may be needed for patients with Hemoglobin H disease whose need for transfusions is increasing.

d. Bone marrow transplant from a compatible related donor is the most effective treatment. Bone marrow transplant from a compatible brother or sister offers the best chance at a cureA bone marrow transplant is done in the hospital. Within one month, the transplanted bone marrow stem cells will start to make new, healthy blood cells.

3. Keep bones and body strong

Bone marrow produces our blood

Eat foods rich in calcium like yogurt, cheese, milk, and dark green vegetables.

Eat foods rich in Vitamin D, like eggs, fatty fish, cereal, and fortified milk.

Eat food rich in Vitamins B and C such as green vegetables and fruits

Zinc and other minerals are important to the body

4. Get enough rest and Sleep

Avoid stress and tension

5. Exercise and stay active.

It is best to do weight-bearing exercise such as walking, jogging, stair climbing, dancing, or lifting weights for 21⁄2 hours a week.

One way to do this is to be active 30 minutes a day at least 5 days a week.

Begin slowly especially if a person has not been active.

6. Do not drink more than 2 alcohol drinks a day for a man or 1 alcohol drink a day for a woman.

Alcohol use also increases the chance of falling and breaking a bone.

Alcohol can affect the neurons and brain cells.

7. Stop or do not begin smoking.

It also interferes with blood supply and healing.

Chapter 1

Thalassemia

What is Thalassemia?

Thalassemia is an inherited disorder of the Red blood cells which is transmitted by a gene.

It produces an abnormal Hemoglobin which cannot for

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kenneth Kee
• Release date: Jun 4, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310180484

Kenneth Kee

Medical doctor since 1972.Started Kee Clinic in 1974 at 15 Holland Dr #03-102, relocated to 36 Holland Dr #01-10 in 2009.Did my M.Sc (Health Management ) in 1991 and Ph.D (Healthcare Administration) in 1993.Dr Kenneth Kee is still working as a family doctor at the age of 74However he has reduced his consultation hours to 3 hours in the morning and 2 hours inthe afternoon.He first started writing free blogs on medical disorders seen in the clinic in 2007 on http://kennethkee.blogspot.com.His purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of his patients which is also his dissertation for his Ph.D (Healthcare Administration). He then wrote an autobiography account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.comThis autobiography account “A Family Doctor’s Tale” was combined with his early “A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders” into a new Wordpress Blog “A Family Doctor’s Tale” on http://ken-med.com.From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 1000 eBooks.He apologized for typos and spelling mistakes in his earlier books.He will endeavor to improve the writing in futures.Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.The later books go into more details of medical disorders.He has published 1000 eBooks on various subjects on health, 1 autobiography of his medical journey, another on the autobiography of a Cancer survivor, 2 children stories and one how to study for his nephew and grand-daughter.The purpose of these simple guides is to educate patient on health disorders and not meant as textbooks.He does not do any night duty since 2000 ever since Dr Tan had his second stroke.His clinic is now relocated to the Buona Vista Community Centre.The 2 units of his original clinic are being demolished to make way for a new Shopping Mall.He is now doing some blogging and internet surfing (bulletin boards since the 1980's) startingwith the Apple computer and going to PC.The entire PC is upgraded by himself from XT to the present Pentium duo core.The present Intel i7 CPU is out of reach at the moment because the CPU is still expensive.He is also into DIY changing his own toilet cistern and other electric appliance.His hunger for knowledge has not abated and he is a lifelong learner.The children have all grown up and there are 2 grandchildren who are even more technically advanced than the grandfather where mobile phones are concerned.This book is taken from some of the many articles in his blog (now with 740 posts) A Family Doctor’s Tale.Dr Kee is the author of:"A Family Doctor's Tale""Life Lessons Learned From The Study And Practice Of Medicine""Case Notes From A Family Doctor"

Book preview

Thalassemia,

A

Simple

Guide

To

The Condition,

Treatment

And

Related Conditions

By

Dr Kenneth Kee

M.B.,B.S. (Singapore)

Ph.D (Healthcare Administration)

Copyright Kenneth Kee 2015 Smashwords Edition

Published By Kenneth Kee at Smashwords.com

Dedication

This book is dedicated

To my wife Dorothy

And my children

Carolyn, Grace

And Kelvin

This book describes the Thalassemia, Treatment and Associated Diseases or in vernacular terms

(What You Need to Treat and Cope with Thalassemia)

This eBook is licensed for the personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader.

If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy.

Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Introduction

Ode To Thalassemia

Thalassemia is an inherited disorder of the Red blood cells

It produces an abnormal Hemoglobin which makes the patient unwell

The patients usually inherit the disease from his parents

If both parents are affected, having thalassemia major child is 25 per cent

There are 2 types of Thalassemia:

Thalassemia major which is a serious severe form of anemia

Thalassemia minor in a person who has received only one thalassemia gene.

This person will have mild anemia and can pass his gene to his offspring.

Complications may be shock from loss of blood and hypotension

There may be liver and spleen damage from frequent blood transfusions

The result of complications is a shorter life span

Unless there is a successful marrow transplant

A person with thalassemia major will need blood transfusions throughout life.

At present a successful bone marrow transplant is the only hope to survive.

Thalassemia minor patients will have mild anemia

He or she will be well compared to the major thalassemia

-An original poem by Kenneth Kee

Interesting Tips about the Thalassemia

A Healthy Lifestyle

1. Take a well Balanced Diet

2. Standard treatments for patients with thalassemia major are blood transfusions, iron chelation, removal of the spleen, and bone marrow transplant.

a. Blood transfusion involves injection of red blood cells through a vein to restore normal levels of healthy red blood cells and hemoglobin. Transfusions are repeated every 4 months in patients with moderate or severe thalassemias and every 2 to 4 weeks in patients with beta thalassemia major.

b. Iron chelation is removal of excess iron from the body. A danger with blood transfusions is that they can cause iron overload, which may in turn cause heart disease. Because of this, patients who receive transfusions also require iron chelation therapy. One of two medicines is used for iron chelation: deferoxamine, a liquid given subcutaneously (under the skin), or deferasirox, a pill given by mouth. Patients who receive blood transfusions and iron chelation may have to take folic acid supplements to restore healthy red blood cells.

c. Splenectomy (removal of the spleen) may be needed for patients with Hemoglobin H disease whose need for transfusions is increasing.

d. Bone marrow transplant from a compatible related donor is the most effective treatment. Bone marrow transplant from a compatible brother or sister offers the best chance at a cureA bone marrow transplant is done in the hospital. Within one month, the transplanted bone marrow stem cells will start to make new, healthy blood cells.

3. Keep bones and body strong

Bone marrow produces our blood

Eat foods rich in calcium like yogurt, cheese, milk, and dark green vegetables.

Eat foods rich in Vitamin D, like eggs, fatty fish, cereal, and fortified milk.

Eat food rich in Vitamins B and C such as green vegetables and fruits

Zinc and other minerals are important to the body

4. Get enough rest and Sleep

Avoid stress and tension

5. Exercise and stay active.

It is best to do weight-bearing exercise such as walking, jogging, stair climbing, dancing, or lifting weights for 2½ hours a week.

One way to do this is to be active 30 minutes a day at least 5 days a week.

Begin slowly especially if a person has not been active.

6. Do not drink more than 2 alcohol drinks a day for a man or 1 alcohol drink a day for a woman.

Alcohol use also increases the chance of falling and breaking a bone.

Alcohol can affect the neurons and brain cells.

7. Stop or do not begin smoking.

It also interferes with blood supply and healing.

Chapter 1

Thalassemia

What is Thalassemia?

Thalassemia is an inherited disorder of the Red blood cells which is transmitted by a gene.

It produces an abnormal Hemoglobin which cannot form the red blood cells properly and results in anemia or insufficient normal hemoglobin in the red blood cells to carry the oxygen to the body.

Hemoglobin is the chemical inside the red blood cells which carries oxygen from the lungs to all body parts.

Thalassemia results in anemia because of low hemoglobin and a low amount of red blood cells.

For the mild form called thalassemia trait, major treatment may not be necessary.

However persons with more severe forms may need blood transfusions on a regular basis.

Thalassemia is seen most commonly in people who originate from the Mediterranean Islands, Asia, Middle and the Far East.

It is a lifelong disease and there is no cure for it.

It affects both females and males.

About 3 per cent of