DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2020.v08i06.039

Pages: 1613-1617

Objective: In this study our main aim is to evaluate the level of awareness about thalassemia among the parents of thalassemic children. Method: This was a Hospital based cross sectional observational study which was conducted at Department of Pediatrics, SaheedZiaur Rahman Medical College Hospital, Bogura, Bangladesh from November 2010 to November 2011 where total 50 parents of thalassemia children were selected by simple randomization. Results: During the study, most of the parents 72% thought thalassemia as a curable disease and only 08% of the parents had idea about the genetic basis of the disease. According to types of thalassemia 28% patients had Beta thalassemia major and 72% had E-beta thalassemia. Perceptions about the prevention of thalassemia among parents were very poor. 100% of them noticed thalassemia as a non-preventable disease and all of them had no idea about the prevention of the disease. Conclusion: Awareness about the disease among the parents is poor and the availability of antenatal diagnosis is not available readily. Bone marrow transplantation is out of reach for most of the parents because of financial constraints. Therefore, conservative treatment remains the choice in developing countries like Bangladesh. Parental awareness regarding various aspects of thalassaemia is of great importance not only for the prevention of thalassaemia in the family, but also for the proper management of thethalassaemic children.