Shahina Daar

The Sultanate of Oman is in a unique geographical location, at the Southeastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula.

Homozygous Beta thalassaemia is a lifelong condition requiring regular blood transfusions from infancy.

Patients with thalassemia major require regular blood transfusions from 6-12 months of age to stay alive.

Unlike Hepatitis B, there is no vaccine available for protection against Hepatitis C virus (HCV).

Β-thalassemia is classified into three phenotypes, depending on the severity of symptoms: 1) thalassemia major (TM); 2) thalassemia Intermedia (TI); 3) β trait or thalassemia minor (Tm).

Patients with homozygous beta thalassemia have complex clinical complications due to the need for blood transfusions and iron overload.