Evaluation of the validity of the pre-marriage mean corpuscular volume value as a predictive test for b-thalassemia carrier status.

Background: The national mandatory premarital screening test is based on mean corpuscular volume (MCV) > 80 fL value for the detection of β-thalassemia to provide acceptance for marriage. The objective of this study is to assess the efficacy of MCV as a screening test for β-thalassemia trait in the present population.

Methods: This study was conducted on 418 blood samples collected from adult individuals.