The occurrence of pulmonary hypertension in patients with thalassemia major

Abstract

Background The life of patients with thalassemia major depends on blood transfusions, while repeated blood transfusions may cause adverse effects such as iron deposition in various organs, includ- ing heart and lungs, which eventually increases the pulmonary arterial pressure. Objective This study was proposed to know the occurrence of pulmonary hypertension in patients with thalassemia major, mea- sured by echocardiography in the Thalassemia Clinic, Department of Child Health, Medical School, Padjadjaran University/Hasan Sadikin Hospital, Bandung. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out on 30 patients with thalassemia major, aged 10-14 year-old who received repeated blood transfusions. The study was conducted from April to May 2002. Subjects were examined right after a blood transfusion completed and the pulmonary arterial pres- sure was assessed using Doppler–echocardiography and 2-D echocardiography. Results Twenty two out of 30 subjects showed pulmonary hyper- tension, with pulmonary arterial pressure ranged between 32.3 to 46.2 mmHg. According to the age group, pulmonary hypertension was found in 12 out of 17 subjects aged 10-12 years old and 10 out of 13 subjects aged 13-14 years old. Conclusion The occurrence of pulmonary hypertension in patients with thalassemia major at Hasan Sadikin Hospital was 22/30 and seemed to increase with the age of the patients

Keywords

• pulmonary hypertension
• thalassemia major
• blood transfusion
• echocardiography