Homozygous beta-thalassaemia in a part-Aboriginal Australian.
We describe here the first case of classical homozygous beta-thalassaemia in a part-Aboriginal child. The child came from Bourke, New South Wales, and is the product of a consanguineous mating. His great-great-grandfather was a camel driver from Sri Lanka who settled in western New South Wales. From the family studies, we have found that there are now 17 carriers of beta-thalassaemia in the Aboriginal community in northwestern New South Wales, and it is anticipated that more part-Aboriginal children with thalassaemia major will be identified. The presence of numerous carriers of beta-thalassaemia in the Aboriginal population would suggest that care should be taken in the administration of iron for the treatment of anaemias found in Aboriginal children.
D001803:Blood Transfusion; D006720:Homozygote; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007232:Infant, Newborn, Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis; D007501:Iron / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000090463:Iron Deficiencies; D008297:Male; D010375:Pedigree; D013789:Thalassemia / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics* / Q000628:therapy; D000095283:Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples
D007501:Iron