Ajman Free Zone Authority Organizes an Awareness Lecture on Thalassemia Disease

In the presence of Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulla bin Sultan Al-Nuaimi, Director General of Ajman Ports and Customs Department and Ajman Free Zone Authority, and with the cooperation of the Emirates Association of Genetic Diseases, Ajman Free Zone Authority organized an awareness lecture on thalassemia disease. The lecture was aimed at guiding the audience on the means and methods of limiting the spread of the disease and in taking

 precautions against it. It was also aimed at   encouraging blood donation at the level of the country and guiding those who are about to get married to take the necessary medical tests, in addition to encouraging the patients to be productive members of the society by providing them with education and job opportunities.

From his side, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulla bin Sultan Al-Nuaimi, Director General of Ajman Ports and Customs Department and Ajman Free Zone Authority, renewed the care of the Authority in adopting such guidance and awareness lectures which benefit medical care for the nationals and expats in the Emirates. He issued his instructions for the necessity of coordinating with the Emirates Association of Genetic Diseases by connecting the association with blood donation campaigns that are seasonally organized by Ajman Free Zone in order to benefit from the collected quantity of blood in treating thalassemia. He also instructed to conduct preliminary tests to all the employees of Ajman Free Zone through a combined campaign to be made within the next few months.

Mrs. Nivin of the Emirates Association of Genetic Diseases, explained the precaution methods against genetic blood diseases in general and against thalassemia in particular, and the consequential physical, medical and psychological problems and complications of the patient and his family. She advised all those who are about to be married to take the medical test before marriage, as it is currently possible, thanks to the scientific and medical advances, to test any person who is interested to find out if he is a carrier of the genes that cause some genetic diseases.

In addition, there are important facts about the treatment of thalassemia patients like proper care and attention under continued supervision and follow-up of specialized centers, the commitment in taking the medications given through continuous medical supervision, psychological help to the carriers of this disease so that they see themselves as individuals and not patients, and encouraging them to become effective members in the society and making them become used to patience and stamina so that they can overcome the challenges that they may face in life, all of this is being offered by specialized centers which are qualified both medically and humanitarianly.

The lecturer stated that in case of wrong diagnosis of the disease or not following up its treatment the red blood cells continue to decrease and other symptoms appear like anemia and the inability of the bone marrow to compensate for this deficiency, while other organs like the spleen and liver attempt to manufacture red blood cells which causes their enlargement.

On treatment methods, she emphasized that the most important method is blood transfusion because of the breakdown of the red blood cells and the resulting anemia, and that the patient needs regular blood transfusion every 3 – 4 weeks, as it results in the maintenance of the normal level of hemoglobin that enables the oxygen to reach the different parts of the body in a better way which in turn results in the normal growth of the baby and prevents the changes that occur in the bones. Regular blood transfusion also prevents other symptoms like the protection of the heart form the complications of anemia and the enlargement of the liver and spleen. The patient needs the red blood cells only hence the transfused blood must be filtered from the white blood cells and platelets.

 As for other treatment methods, the lecturer emphasized that injection with Desferal comes as a second choice as it is basically a material that links to the iron in the body and exits the body with this iron though urination. The importance of Desferal, which is injected subcutaneously for a period of 8 – 10 hours a day or through the veins or in the muscles, in that the gradual precipitation of iron in the body of the patient disables the functions of the cells and subsequently causes their death and loss of their function.  It also results in many disturbances to the functions of the hormones, the heart, liver and skin. Accordingly, the extra iron must be disposed of by regular intake of Desferal which expels the iron out of the body. Desferal is also now available for oral intake instead of subcutaneous injection, and consecutive studies have proven the effectiveness of this new form of the medicine compared to injection version.
     
Mrs. Nivin stated that the transplant of bone marrow and stem cells in recent years, where a patient may obtain them from a brother or donor in case of tissue match, started to take an important role in the treatment of some genetic blood diseases like beta-thalassemia and sickle cell anemia, pointing out that the first successful bone marrow transplant operation was made to a thalassemia patient who was 16 months of age in 1981. During the following years and based on continuous research in the field of bone marrow and stem cell transplants, bone marrow transplant is currently one of the agreed treatments of choice in all the international bone marrow transplant centers in the world. The operation depends on the existence of a donor, preferably a brother or sister of the patient, or a foreign donor in which case 100% tissue match must be confirmed between the donor and the patient.

The lecture was attended by a large number of the leadership and employees of Ajman Free Zone who interacted with the lecturer by posing questions and requesting clarifications on the precaution methods against the disease.