National Registry of Patients with Thalassemia Major in Bulgaria – June 2011

Data for 255 patients with thalassemia major was collected during Phase III of the project. The Organization of Thalassemics in Bulgaria and university hematology clinics have greatly supported and helped the implementation of this phase. 251 patients (98.43%) had consented to be officially registered. Proportion of men (51.16%) is slightly higher. The average age of patients is 21 years, while minimum one is 1.5 years and maximum one is 64 years. Based on the information about birthplace, most patients with thalassemia are born in Sofia, Plovdiv, Stara Zagora, Burgas, Varna, Haskovo, Pleven and Ruse. The calculated non-standardized prevalence is 3.46 per 100 000 people. Patients are treated and followed up in 8 administrative regions in the country, as in Sofia and Plovdiv there are respectively three and two hematology centers.