الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract summary The thalassemias are a heterogeneous group of genetic heritable disorders of hemoglobin (Hb) synthesis, considered as the most common monogenic disorder in the world, affecting men and women equally and poses a severe health and economic burden to patients and families at risk. Thalassemia is a major health problem in Egypt since it estimated out of 1.5 million live births, 1000 children with thalassemia are born annually . Patients with thalassemia can develop liver fibrosis because of iron liver overload and hepatitis virus C (HCV) infection. Multicenter crosssectional studies have reported that the development and the severity of liver fibrosis are strongly related to the extent of liver iron overload and to the presence of chronic HCV infection. HCV infection is the main risk factor for liver fibrosis in transfusion-dependent patients with thalassemia. excess liver iron is now clearly recognized as a cofactor for the development of advanced fibrosis in patients with HCV infection. Although, hepatic fibrogenesis has long been thought to be an irreversible process, it is now evident that it is a dynamic process with significant potential for reversal; unlike cirrhosis, which is irreversible. Identification of liver fibrosis at an early stage would be of great significance. Liver biopsy is an essential method for assessing fibrosis and it continues to have an important role in the diagnosis, prognosis, and management of patients with elevated results of iron studies and abnormal liver function test results. Therefore, liver biopsy is considered the gold standard for assessing hepatic fibrosis. However, it is an invasive and painful procedure that may lead to very serious life-threatening complications, limiting its acceptance and repetition in usually asymptomatic patients. In addition, the accuracy of liver biopsy in assessing fibrosis may be |