Nutritional Status in a Sample of Patients With β-Thalassemia Major

• Published in: Curēus (Palo Alto, CA) CA), 2022-08, Vol.14 (8), p.e27985-e27985
• Main Authors: Lidoriki, Irene, Stavrou, George, Schizas, Dimitrios, Frountzas, Maximos, Fotis, Lampros, Kapelouzou, Alkistis, Kokkota, Smaro, Fyntanidou, Barbara, Kotzampassi, Katerina
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Blood diseases; Body composition; Body mass index; Chelation therapy; Hematology; Hemoglobin; Iron; Malnutrition; Nutrition; Nutritional status; Patients; Vitamin D; Weight control
• ISSN: 2168-8184; 2168-8184
• DOI: 10.7759/cureus.27985

Background: Patients suffering from thalassemia have decreased levels of lean body mass and an increased nutritional risk. To assess the body composition and vitamin D levels of thalassemic patients in relation to nutritional risk.Methods: A total of 67 consecutive adult patients who were diagnosed with thalassemia major and followed a regular blood transfusion scheme were included in this study. Demographic and clinical data were collected for each participant. Blood samples were collected to assess 25-hydroxy-vitamin D (25-OH-D) levels. The assessment of patients’ nutritional risk was based on the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool. Body composition assessment was based on bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA).Results: Eleven patients (16.4%) and five patients (7.5%) were at moderate and high risk for malnutrition, respectively. Moreover, 86.6% of patients had a low fat-free mass index (FFMI) and 74.6% of patients had a high-fat mass (FM) index. The prevalence of sarcopenic obesity and 25-OH-D deficiency was 64.2% and 92.2%, respectively. Medium and high-risk patients had significantly lower BMI (18.81 ± 1.29 vs 23.90 ± 2.65 kg/m2, p