Vol. 6, Issue 1, Part A (2024)

Due to their autosomal recessive inheritance pattern, hemoglobinopathies constitute some of the most prevalent genetic diseases in the world, including thalassemia and structural variants. Thalassemia requires lifelong care with blood transfusions. Early diagnosis aids management. Iraq faces varied prevalence rates, necessitating a comprehensive study of demographic features and complications. So, the current study aimed to estimate the prevalence of the main hemoglobinopathy categories in Basrah, to study the demographic characteristics, to categorize the disease-related complications, and to discuss the annual new registration. A retrospective cross-sectional survey was done in Basrah's major hereditary blood disease centers, which examined records from 2013 to 2022. Data was gathered regarding patient demographics, disease categories, and complications. Hemoglobinopathies had a prevalence of 238 per 100,000, with sex-specific rates of 247 per 100,000 in males and 229 per 100,000 in females. Most patients (33.41%) were aged 6–15, 52.11% were male, and sickle cell disease constituted 68.58% of cases. Complications occurred in 14.21% of cases, with sickle crisis being the most common (26.83%). Over 10 years, cases peaked at 606 in 2019 and decreased to 349 by 2022. As a conclusion, Basrah Governorate contains the largest cohort of hemoglobinopathy patients in comparison to the national level. Sickle cell disease represents the predominant disease, and sickle cell-related complications are frequently evident.