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Query: UMLS:C0039730 (thalassemia)
 10,305 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Preserving fertility, preventing early menopause, and predicting reproductive ability have become crucial for many adult thalassemia major females. Luteinizing hormone/follicle-stimulating hormone (LH/FSH) and estradiol, commonly used for assessment of fertility potential in thalassemia, have a poor predictive value. Current reproductive practice uses markers of ovarian reserve testing, which were not yet studied in thalassemia women. We explored the relationship between liver iron concentration (LIC) and fertility status in 26 females (mean 30 years old). Seventeen (65%) of them experienced primary or secondary amenorrhea. Levels of LH/FSH and estradiol were low or undetectable in 48% and 35% of patients, respectively and did not correlate with age, presence of amenorrhea, and LIC. This further addresses the need for utilization of current available methods for assessment of fertility capacity in thalassemia, which will also allow future correlation with pituitary iron measures by MRI as well as early intervention for fertility preservation.
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PMID:Fertility potential in thalassemia major women: current findings and future diagnostic tools. 2071 97

Beta-thalassemia (BTM) major is the most common haemoglobin disorder in the world, with high prevalence in people of Mediterranean, Arab or Asian origin. It has been estimated that about 1.5% of the global population (80-90 million people) are carriers of BTM. In patients with BTM, long-term transfusion therapy for the correction of anaemia leads to toxic iron overload, resulting in significant morbidity including liver damage, cardiac complications and endocrine dysfunction. The commonest abnormality is hypogonadotropic hypogonadism, which presents with primary amenorrhoea, delayed puberty or secondary amenorrhoea with consequent infertility. Nevertheless, current improvements in the management of thalassemia disorders offer patients the possibility of having a regularly functioning reproductive system and increased chances of achieving a pregnancy. The aim of the present review is to analyse all aspects of fertility management in BTM women, by examining the main causes of infertility, in order to give practical tools to ensure a complete diagnostic work-up and discuss intervention options to guarantee maximum reproductive health.
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PMID:Thalassemia and infertility. 2733 21


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