Prevalence of Thalassemia Traits in People without Anemia or Microcytosis

Introduction: The mean corpuscular volume (MCV) lower than 80 fL is always used as one clue for screening thalassemia/hemoglobinopathy. Objective: To survey the alpha-thalassemia-1, beta-thalassemia and hemoglobinopathy in the individuals who have normal hemoglobin (Hb) concentration and normal MCV. Materials and Methods: The participants with normal Hb level and normal MCV randomly selected from the physically normal people are investigated for Hb typing and PCR for alpha-thalassemia-1 genotyping. Results: From 152 participants, there are no alpha-thalassemia-1 trait (SEA and Thai types), 24 Hb E traits (15.8 %), 3 Hb Constant-Spring traits (2.0%) and 1 beta thalassemia trait (0.6%) Conclusion: The alpha-thalassemia-1 can be excluded in people with normal Hb concentration and normal MCV.