Determination of osteoporosis frequency among the thalassemia major patients

Sonuc: Talasemi major hastalar›n›n kalan hayatlar›n› ve yaflam ka- litesine olan etkileri ac›s›ndan kemik dansitometri ile taranmas›n›n ve uygun tedavilere en erken donemde bafllanmas›n›n onemli ol- duu goruflundeyiz. Anahtar sozcukler: Talasemi major, osteoporoz, osteopeni. Summary Objective: Thalassemia major is the heaviest form of the tha- lassemias. Anemia, hepatosplenomegaly, spinal deformities and osteoporosis can be seen in the patients with thalassemia major. Our aim is to detect the frequency of osteoporosis among the tha- lassemia major patients. Methods: Patients with diagnosis of thalassemia major were included in the study. Bone mineral density (BMD) scores (T-score and Z-score) less than -2.5 were accepted as osteoporosis and the scores between -1.5 and -2.5 were accepted as osteopenia. Patients were asked if they had any treatment for bone disorders. Results: Total 25 patients with thalasemia major (14 men, 11 women) were included to study. Patients average age was 22.0± 0.90 years. According to BMD scores 16 of our patients had osteoporosis where as 9 patients had osteopenia. None of the patients were screened for osteoporosis and also none of them was taken any supportive bone treatment. Conclusions: Patients with thalasemia major should be screened for osteoporosis which will affect their further life and quality of life and appropriate medications should be given at early stages.