A pilot study on the prevalence and patterns of haemoglobinopathies in Datia District, Madhya Pradesh, India

Haemoglobinopathies are the most common inherited disorder of Red Blood Cells across the globe and one of the major public health problems in many regions of India. Variation in ethnic and regional prevalence is observed in many parts of India. The prevalence and pattern of haemoglobinopathies in Datia region has not been reported limiting the knowledge of disease profiles in this region. The present work aimed to find the broad view of various haemoglobinopathies in the local area and population at risk. To identify prevalence and patterns of three blood disorders namely sickle cell anaemia, β-thalassemia major and G-6-P-D deficiency samples were collected from the patients attending various OPDs of District Hospital, Datia, Madhya Pradesh, India. All anaemic patients referred by Government District Hospital, Datia District, M.P. were screened for various haemoglobinopathies. A total of 605 cases were received from September 2017 to March 2020 at the Model Rural Health Research Unit (MRHRU), Datia, M.P. All 605 samples were tested for different haemoglobinopathies by solubility test and G6PD deficiency, cellulose acetate electrophoresis, and suspected cases were confirmed from HPLC. A total of 605 patients were screened for haemoglobinopathies from District Hospital, Datia. It was found that 13 cases (2.14%) were of β thalassemia trait and other rare variants followed by 4 cases (0.66%) of sickle cell trait. A total of 3 cases (0.5%) of β thalassemia major were observed in a total sample of 605. No previous studies have reported the status of haemoglobinopathies in this region, since this region is known for tribes it is essential to have study of blood genetic disorders. Novelty of this study is that it is the first report from this region to the best of our knowledge. Very low prevalence rate of sickle cell anaemia and thalassemia was observed. So, large-scale screening in the region is required for identifying the true burden. Chelation therapy, gene therapies in future could be great help to the patients of this region.