IJFANS International Journal of Food and Nutritional Sciences

ISSN PRINT 2319 1775 Online 2320-7876

The Burden of Thalassemia in India: A Strategy for Disease Prevention and Control

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Dr Malay Bajpai1 , Dr Mayurika Tyagi2 , Dr Swati Singh 3

Abstract

The most prevalent monogenic diseases worldwide are thalassemias and structural haemoglobin variations. A b thalassemia syndrome is thought to affect 100,000 people in India, and there are approximately 150,000 people who have sickle cell disease. However, only a small percentage of these patients receive optimal care, and the majority of families cannot afford allogeneic stem cell transplants. Promoting education and awareness campaigns, stepping up screening in all states with micromapping to determine the true burden, and creating enough facilities for genetic counselling and prenatal diagnosis in public sector institutions are all viable options for management. Government and non-governmental organisations have been working toward this aim for the past three to four decades, but community control in a large and diverse nation is difficult, and a national programme reaching all rural regions, where nearly 70% of the population dwells, has not yet started. 1) Education of health professionals, school and college students, expectant mothers, and the general public are necessary thalassemia control measures. 2) Opening prenatal diagnosis centres in various parts of the nation 3) Establishing more day care facilities for handling current thalassemia patients. 4) Building nationwide stem cell transplant facilities that are affordable. This study investigates methods for collaborating with the Central and State Governments, NGOs, Parents-Patients Societies, and Corporate Houses to successfully lessen the burden of hemoglobinopathies in India. With the assistance of numerous national specialists, the Nationwide Health Mission, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has developed guidelines for carrying out such a national programme

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