Sabah has most thalassaemia patients in M’sia

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah has the highest number of patients with thalassaemia in Malaysia. About 80 per cent of all cases in the country are in Sabah and these patients require blood transfusion every month, said Queen Elizabeth Hospital Transfusiologist Saliz Mazrina Shaharom.

She said 69,487 blood units were transfused throughout Sabah in 2018 and 34,588 blood units used from January until June this year across the State.

Meanwhile, State Health and People’s Wellbeing Assistant Minister Norazlinah Arif said Sabah is also the second highest State that has anaemic patients.

“It is really important to disseminate awareness on anaemia to the people out there. So, we will organise seminars and even invite doctors from Queen Elizabeth Hospital to give talks,” she said after officiating the MP Iron Clinic’s opening at Plaza Shell on Thursday.

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According to Chief Medical Director of MP Iron Clinic Dr. Shorubben Chinetamby, Sabah is suffering from blood deficiency and it is also the second highest state in Malaysia in blood collection.

“Almost two-third of the population of Sabah are women, and statistics shows that more than 1 in every 3 women are iron deficient, thus making Sabah a very high-risk state for iron deficiency,” he said, adding that early symptoms of iron deficiency include fatigue, hair loss, brain fog, poor immune function (prone to common flu and cold), cold intolerance and much more.

He said avoiding or minimising the risk of requiring blood transfusions is critically important.

“Firstly, there is limited supplies of blood in Sabah and it must be reserved for those requiring it for life support such as victims of car crash or for patients with severe thalassaemia.

“Secondly, when given unnecessarily, there is a huge cost to the society as well as significant risks to the patients receiving the transfusion,” he said.

“Iron deficiency is measure with serum ferritin; it is a marker of the iron stores in the body. When the blood concentration fall below 30ng/mL, the body no longer has enough iron in the body.

“Humans cannot make iron so we are 100 per cent reliant on diet. Due to the higher demand, sometimes women cannot get enough iron from diet and other sources may be needed to treat their deficiency. Intravenous iron (or iron administered via the veins) is a viable option for many,” said Dr. Shorubben

He also said clinical data continues to grow and demonstrates that IV iron offers a rapid correction of iron deficiency, often with just 1 injection (given under 1 hour) and symptomatic relief in a matter of days. Improvements in most patients within 1 week.

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“For pregnant women, iron deficiency is a significant risk factor. It may lead to pre-term labour, reduced weight of the baby or even post-partum haemorrhage – a major cause of maternal death. Worse, not only is the mother at risk but the baby also has increased risk for iron deficiency which may impair their cognitive development,” he said.

He said although iron deficiency predominately impacts women, men are also at risk as they grow older – especially if having concomitant diseases such as chronic kidney disease, cancer or heart issues.

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