Question

What types of thalassemia are there?

Answer

Thalassemia can be primarily divided into three types:

  1. Severe Thalassemia: Patients with this type experience symptoms such as anemia, enlargement of the liver and spleen, jaundice, and growth retardation shortly after birth. Specific features include a larger head, wider eye spacing, flattened nasal bridge, prominent forehead and cheeks, with a typical appearance of a shield-shaped head and long bones that are prone to fractures. The skeletal changes are due to excessive activity of bone marrow hematopoiesis, expansion of the medullary cavity, and thinning of the cortical bone. Some patients may form chest tumors between the ribs and spine, and complications such as gallstones and lower limb ulcers are also common, including acute pericarditis, secondary hypersplenism, and secondary hemochromatosis.
  2. Intermediate Thalassemia: Patients present with mild to moderate anemia and most can survive into adulthood.
  3. Mild Thalassemia: This type of patient has mild or no symptoms of anemia and is usually discovered during a family history investigation.