Maldives thalassaemia registry receives 26 additions each year

An average of 26 new patients are added to the national thalassaemia registry each year, Maldives Minister of Education Dr Aishath Shiham has said.

Speaking at Nasandhura Palace Hotel last night at an event to mark the annual thalassaemia day, Education Minister Aishath Shiham said that the Maldives thalassaemia registry has about 500 patients and that one in five persons, about 18 percent of Maldivian population has the thalassaemia carrier gene. International Thalassaemia Day is marked on 8 May each year.

The difficult nature of the condition causes patients and families to suffer for long periods of time, making the International Thalassaemia Day an important day in the Maldivian calendar, the Education Minister said.

Last night’s event saw the hand-over Desferal Infusion Pumps to the 28 thalassaemia patients. Maldivian Thalassaemia Society published a book for parents with children suffering from thalassaemia, and Dr Farzana Khatoon received a special award for her long standing service to thalassaemia patients in the Maldives.