Ranchi: Sadar hospital begins counselling to curb transfer of blood genetic disorders

RANCHI: To prevent the transfer of haematological genetic disorders like sickle cell anaemia and thalassemia to the next generation, doctors of the Ranchi district hospital are counselling over 4,000 identified carriers.
A team of doctors are educating the carriers on ways to prevent the transfer of the disorders to their offspring.
Talking to TOI on Thursday, the head of the pathology department at the Ranchi district hospital, Dr Bimlesh Kumar Singh, said, “W have been able to screen 55,000 suspected patients, out of whom over 4,100 have tested positive as carriers for these genetic disorders.To ensure that they take adequate precautions, we are organising counselling sessions so that they could be educated on the ways to avoid the transfer of disorder to the next generation.”
According to the Ranchi district health records, of the 55,000 people screened, the solubility test for sickle cell anaemia was positive on 2,609 samples while 1,526 results were positive in the Nestroft test which confirms the presence of thalassemia.
Among the 2,609 patients whose solubility test came positive, 103 were active patients of sickle cell anaemia while 1,426 were carriers.
On the other hand, 333 people were reported as suffering from beta-thalassemia (minor) while 64 were active patients.
Dr Singh said, “We will be holding a counselling session every two months with the identified carriers and patients. One of the sessions was completed on Wednesday which was attended by over 100 such persons.”
The doctors’ team asked the participants to undergo regular check-ups and not to take any medication without consultations. The carriers were also advised not to get married to a person who himself or herself is a carrier or an active patient as it will lead to the transfer of the disorder to their offspring.
“If a carrier marries another carrier, their child will get the disorder. So, we ask all such persons to undergo a blood test for themselves and their partners before getting married. We also suggest the carriers not to self-medicate themselves with iron and folic acid but consult a doctor,” Dr Singh said.
The patients were also asked to refrain from strenuous jobs as it leads to weakness and can deteriorate their condition which can prove fatal.
Ranchi civil surgeon Dr Vinod Kumar said, “We also test women visiting us for anti-natal check-ups, girl students of classes IX and X. We have been also organising awareness programme for students so that they spread the word among their communities.”