Echocardiographic Findings In Thalassemia Major Patients: An Experience From Jammu

ABSTRACT

Current Study was done to assess the echocardigraphic changes in Thalassemia Major patients. All Thalassemic Major patients above 10 years of age registered with Thalassemia day care centre at SMGS hospital, Government Medical College Jammu with normal electrocardiogram and no clinical features of heart failure were included in this retrospective study. Their medical records were analyzed in terms of age, gender, average hemoglobin levels, serum ferritin levels and echocardiographic findings. 95 patients who were more than 10 years of age and had normal electrocardiogram and no clinical features of heart failure were included in this study. Out of these 95 patients 55 showed abnormal findings on echocardiography. All patients except one showed normal systolic function. Echocardiography in 54 patients showed only diastolic dysfunction and one had tricuspid regurgitation (TR) in addition . 55 Thalassemia major patients with abnormal echocardiographic findings comprised of 30 males and 25 females. All the patients in the age group of more than 20 years and 12 patients in the age group of 10 years to 20 years showed abnormal echocardiographic findings. Average hemoglobin and serum ferritin in these children were around 5-7gms /dl and more than 3000 ng/ml respectively. Echocardiographic findings suggestive of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction were the commonest findings indicating early cardiac dysfunction in patients with Thalassemia major in 2nd and 3rd decade of their life.