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.