Abstract

Background:Thalassemia also known as “Cooley’s anemia” is an inherited disease of the
red blood cells classified as a hemoglobinopathy. The present study was conducted to
assess prevalence of HIV seropositivity among thalassemic patients in a tertiary care
teaching centre.
Materials & Methods: 80 thalassemic patients of both genders were included. All the
samples for detection of anti- HIV antibodies was done as per the guidelines of National
AIDS Control Organisation (NACO).
Results: Out of 80 patients, males were 45 and females were 35. Age group 0-5 years had
10, 5-10 years had 25, 10-20 years had 40 and >20 years had 5 patients. Seroprevalence of
HIV were 1 case in age group 0-5 years, 3 in age group 5-10 years and 2 in age group 10-
20 years of age.
Conclusion: Authors found lowseroprevalence of HIV among thalassemia patients.