Reproductive behaviour of mothers of children with beta-thalassaemia major

Thalassaemia is the most common monogenic autosomal hereditary disease worldwide. This questionnaire-based cross-sectional study looked at the reproductive behaviour of 156 mothers of children affected with beta-thalassaemia major [Cooley anaemia] in Fars province, southern Islamic Republic of Iran. Regardless of the number of affected children, the parents of children with Cooley anaemia had an average of 3 unaffected children, the same as the average forthe provincial population.The findings indicate that reproductive compensation occurs in families with a child with Cooley anaemia in this province. Genetic counselling, either before marriage or after the birth of the first affected child, had a significant effect on lowering the number of children born

Prevalence of atrial fibrillation in a primary health care centre in Fars Province, Islamic Republic of Iran

This study determined the prevalence of atrial fibrillation at a primary health care centre in Fars province of the Islamic Republic of Iran. All ambulatory people aged > or = 50 years visiting the centre between April and October 2001 were screened for atrial fibrillation using a st and ard 12-lead ECG. The mean +/- SD age of participants was 64.0 +/- 8.9 years. Of 463 participants aged 50-79 years, 13 [2.8%] had atrial fibrillation [median age 74 years], significantly more women [10/230] than men [3/233]. Unlike previous studies in industrialized countries, the prevalence tripled with each decade of life and increased significantly from 0.6% in the 50-59 years to 6.4% in the 70-79 years age group. With increasing longevity in some developing countries, atrial fibrillation and consequently stroke may become major health problems