To establish the frequency of hemoglobinopathies and thalassemias in patients with non-ferropenic anemia, 58 patients with confirmed non-ferropenic anemia and 235 non-anemic individuals (control group) were studied. All samples were obtained from the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA), Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The techniques used were Alkaline pH cellulose acetate electrophoresis and cytological screening of Hb, Hl, HPLC, hemogram and ferritin. The data analysis showed that 63% of the patients with non-ferropenic anemia carried some type of inherited anemia: 25.9% of heterozygous alpha-thalassemia, 32.8% of heterozygous beta-thalassemia, 3.4% of heterozygosity for hemoglobin S (Hb AS) and 1.7% of homozygosity for hemoglobin C (Hb CC). Inherited anemias were detected in 14.1% of the control group: 11.5% of alpha-thalassemia, 0.9% of beta-thalassemia, 1.3% of heterozygosity for hemoglobin S (Hb AS) and 0.4% of heterozygosity for hemoglobin C (Hb AC). The results obtained showed that the prevalence of variant thalassemias and hemoglobins in the control group is coincident with that described in the literature. However, physicians and health services should be informed about the overwhelming prevalence of these inherited homeopathies in individuals with non-ferropenic anemia, due to its importance in the definitive diagnosis of anemia and for the correct therapeutic proceedings.
Hemoglobinopathies; thalassemia; non-ferropenic anemia; epidemiology
