ABSTRACT
In January 2002, a pilot programme of neonatal screening for sickle cell disease was launched in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 3 districts of Abu Dhabi emirate. This paper reports the incidence of sickle cell diseases, other haemoglobinopathies and haemoglobinopathy carriers over a 12-month period using high performance liquid chromatography as a primary screening method. The overall incidence of sickle cell disease among 22 200 screened neonates was 0.04% (0.07% for UAE citizens and 0.02% for non-UAE citizens). The incidence of sickle cell trait was 1.1% overall (1.5% for UAE citizens and 0.8% for non-UAE citizens). Universal neonatal screening for sickle cell haemoglobin at the national level should be considered.
Subject(s)
Anemia, Sickle Cell , Genetic Testing , Hemoglobinopathies , Neonatal Screening , Anemia, Sickle Cell/diagnosis , Anemia, Sickle Cell/epidemiology , Anemia, Sickle Cell/genetics , Birth Rate , Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid , Follow-Up Studies , Genetic Counseling , Genetic Testing/methods , Genetic Testing/statistics & numerical data , Health Services Needs and Demand , Hemoglobin C Disease/diagnosis , Hemoglobin C Disease/epidemiology , Hemoglobin C Disease/genetics , Hemoglobin E , Hemoglobinopathies/diagnosis , Hemoglobinopathies/epidemiology , Hemoglobinopathies/genetics , Hemoglobins, Abnormal , Heterozygote , Humans , Incidence , Infant, Newborn , Neonatal Screening/methods , Neonatal Screening/statistics & numerical data , Pilot Projects , Population Surveillance , Prenatal Diagnosis , Residence Characteristics/statistics & numerical data , Risk Factors , Sickle Cell Trait/diagnosis , Sickle Cell Trait/epidemiology , Sickle Cell Trait/genetics , Thalassemia/diagnosis , Thalassemia/epidemiology , Thalassemia/genetics , United Arab Emirates/epidemiologyABSTRACT
In January 2002, a pilot programme of neonatal screening for sickle cell disease was launched in the United Arab Emirates [UAE] in 3 districts of Abu Dhabi emirate. This paper reports the incidence of sickle cell diseases, other haemoglobinopathies and haemoglobinopathy carriers over a 12-month period using high performance liquid chromatography as a primary screening method. The overall incidence of sickle cell disease among 22 200 screened neonates was 0.04% [0.07% for UAE citizens and 0.02% for non-UAE citizens]. The incidence of sickle cell trait was 1.1% overall [1.5% for UAE citizens and 0.8% for non-UAE citizens]. Universal neonatal screening for sickle cell haemoglobin at the national level should be considered
