Other Hemoglobin Variant?, Need Help

After about 6 months of wondering, waiting, and agonizing, my family has been given some good news.  My cousin's daughter does NOT have Beta-Thal Major as they had originally said.  In fact, she only has a hemoglobin trait.  That's where I would love help, if someone is able.

The doctors have determined that our family is not a carrier of Beta-Thal.  We are carriers of another hemoglobin variant called, "Athens Georgia Variant", which I've also seen referred to as "Waco Variant".  I have not been able to find out much about it.  Any information would be appreciated.

Thanks!  Katie

Hi Katie,

Hb Athens Georgia is a variant of the beta globin gene that is classified as asymptomatic. There are over 900 known variants of the beta hemoglobin gene and many of the variants are asymptomatic and cause no known problems. Hb Athens Georgia is included in this group. One case I found online of Hb Athens Georgia combined with one beta thal zero gene showed almost normal oxygen affinity. The only item of note I found about it is that the presence of Hb Athens Georgia can confuse the results of the HbA1c test that is used with diabetics. The HbA1c level may seem higher than it is as a result. This would be purely of diagnostic value for a diabetic who also carries that gene. It doesn't mean anything in terms of health though.

I am curious how this could have been interpreted as thal major.