Prevalence of Thalassemia among Newborns: A Re-visited after 20 Years of a Prevention and Control Program in Northeast Thailand.

Background: To provide accurate prevalence information of thalassemia in northeast Thailand, authors performed thalassemia screening in newborns after 20 years implementation of a prevention and control program.

Methods: Study was done on 350 cord blood specimens collected consecutively at Maternal and Child Hospital, Regional Health Promotion Center 7, Khon Kaen, Thailand. All kinds of α- and β-thalassemias were identified using combined hemoglobin (Hb) and DNA analyses.