Fighting the Fatigue

Anyone have ideas for, or have had success with, fighting hte fatigue caused by T-minor? That is, besides the generic things like workout, ginseng, etc... Anything specific to T-minor?

Hi,
This is my first time on here. My husband has Thal Minor and I am like you - looking for answers, tips etc. My husband is a motor mechanic so his job is quite physical. He will be 47 next month and I have noticed that this last year he has really slowed down. He gets home from work and falls asleep on the couch most nights. He has been taking 2 "Berocca Performance" every morning plus a "Mega B" capsule. This seems to help. We only found out about his thal by accident when he went to donate blood for the first (and last) time. The staff at the bloodbank made me feel extremely guilty because they thought he was only anaemic.  We have since had our daughter tested and she hasn't inherited it, thank goodness.
Any tips, hints or advice would be gratefully appreciated - please.

Welcome to the site Kaz.

You have come to the right location. There are quite a few members who might be able to answer your questions.

I too think Thal(Minor) and Fatigue have a relation. I think fatigue shows up with age for Thal(Minor's). Some of the members have mentioned using Wheatgrass. Also, I think Folic Acid helps.

And for donating blood, I have heard Thal(Minor) can donate blood. The only thing you want to make sure is Hemoglobin level should be in the normal range.

What type of Thal(Minor) does your husband have? It is Alpha or Beta? It is nice to hear that your daughter has NOT inherited Thal(Minor). What tests have been done for your daughter? - Was it Hemoglobin Electrophoresis? The reason I ask is because sometimes, the Electrophoresis results get muddy if the Iron levels are NOT in normal range.

-Narendra

welcome Kaz,
Fatigue was my main concerned when I first was  diagnosed with THal minor aged 45yrs and it got worst  as I get older.I found out that now, I cannot cope with Physical and emotional stress and if I push myself my body results in aches and pain and after which I need a couple of days to settle.
I had to stop work at the age of 49yrs, that is because when it was busy, I couldn't cope  with the stress and details it got all confused.I had a close call,I end up in hospital with a miocardial infarction resulting in me taking aspirin for the rest of my life .I now( Teach as a volunteer one day a week)even this, at times, I can't do.Actually I was 38yrs old when I nearly bled to death, I then had an emergency operation(hyterectomy)

Unless one is suffering its hard to explain the change in the person, it can affect your whole body and lifestyles  and I also found that at the time my organs commenced to deteriotes,
My blood pressure sky rocket ,cholestrol uncontrolled,thinking muddled and depression sets in.
My only advise is that your husband need to start paying attention to his health and live as stress free as posible and please see a medical pratitioner.This site is very good for learning and support, I've found it to be my life line in many occassions.Thanks everyone.
Good luck Kaz and your husband and we are all here .
Kathy.

I am a thal minor or carrior and i don't feel any of the above. Not only this but found that i have iron deficiency which is 39 ( normal 60 to 160 ).

I thought all minors are only carriers and have no symptoms. Is that right or wrong??

Manal

Hello Manal,

There are many different changes to the globin genes that can cause thalassaemia.  It is thought that some of these changes have a bigger effect than others when inherited with a "normal" copy of the gene (as in the case of a carrier).  So a lot of carriers don't have any symptoms, but some might suffer mild anaemia (not severe enough to require blood transfusions), and others seem to have more serious symptoms.  As Andy has discussed in other areas of this site, some people who are technically carriers have been diagnosed as having thalassaemia intermedia.  It is possible that there are changes in other genes that interact with the globin genes that might affect the severity of thalassaemia - for example, genes involved in regulation. 

There are still a lot of questions to be answered!  That's why it is so good to be able to share information with other people around the world on this site!  The term `heterozygous' refers to a person who has two different copies of the same gene.  For example, a person who inherits one normal copy of the beta-globin gene and one mutated copy is a carrier, and they are also said to be heterozygous for the beta-globin gene.

There is a heterozygous beta-thalassaemia condition described here:
http://www.charite.de/ch/medgen/eumedis/thalassemia04/molecular-clinical-aspects.html#N1003B

http://www.genome.jp/dbget-bin/www_bget?omim+603902

and a quote from this website acknowledges the variation in thalassaemia:  http://www.asheducationbook.org/cgi/content/full/2005/1/31

The heterozygous states for ß thalassemia also show a tremendous phenotypic diversity, comparable to that for the inheritance of two ß thalassemia alleles. In some cases, the ß thalassemia allele is so mild that it is phenotypically ‘silent,’ with no anemia or hematological abnormalities.4,5 In others, the heterozygous state causes a phenotype almost as severe as the major forms, that is, the ß thalassemia allele is dominantly inherited.6

I also found a resource that provides information about thalassamia intermedia:
http://www.emedicine.com/ped/topic2232.htm

Hope this is of help!

Cheers,
SalD.

Newer classifications of thal minor separate thal minor into subcategories of silent carrier (thalassemia minima) and thal minor.

This site gives good explanations of the different types of beta thalassemia.

http://health.enotes.com/genetic-disorders-encyclopedia/beta-thalassemia

Beta thalassemia minima

There are no symptoms for this type. It is considered to be a "silent" form of beta thalassemia.

Beta thalassemia minor

Individuals with this type of beta thalassemia may be asymptomatic or experience very few symptoms. Symptoms may be worse in individuals that are pregnant, under stress, or malnourished. Symptoms may include:

    * Fatigue. This may be the only symptom that an individual with beta thalassemia minor exhibits. Fatigue is caused by the decreased oxygen carrying capacity of the red blood cells, resulting in lowered oxygenation for cells and tissues.
    * Anemia. Anemia is a decrease in the amount of hemoglobin in the blood. Hemoglobin is needed to carry oxygen on the red blood cells. In beta thalassemia minor there is a decrease in adult hemoglobin (HbA) and an increase in hemoglobin A2. Hemoglobin A2 is a minor hemoglobin that contains delta globin chains in the place of beta globin chains. Anemia is most likely to occur during pregnancy.
    * Splenomegaly. Enlargement of the spleen may occur due to increased removal of defective red blood cells. This is rarely seen in individuals with beta thalassemia minor and may be accompanied by pain in the upper left portion of the abdomen.
    * Skin. The skin color of individuals with beta thalassemia minor may be pale (pallor) due to oxygen deprivation in blood.

The severity of all thalassemias is related to the amount of deletion or mutation of the hemoglobin gene.  Complete deletion of one of the genes is called beta thal zero and can cause symptoms more similar to intermedia.

Minors can also have iron deficiency anemia, just as anyone without thal can. It is necessary to have this diagnosed through ferritin tests before taking supplements.

Thanks a lot SAID and Andy.

It is now very clear for the thal minor and therefore Andy, i can describ myself as thal minima. It is never black and white, there are many shades of gray.

The subject of heterozygous and homozygous is not very clear to me.  For example having my son as an intermedia. I understand that his two hemoglobin genes are not normal since he took one from me and the other from his father ( also a carrier ) and he is not a major because the abnormality of our genes was not strongly manifested.  Do I make sense?

Manal

Hi Andy,
THANK_YOU, this is what I have it all make sense

Symptoms of beta thalassemia minor may be similar to those of sideroblastic anemia (a disorder characterized by low levels of hemoglobin, fatigue, and weakness) and sickle cell disease (a disease that changes red blood cell shape, rendering it incapable of functioning).
Kathy

Hello Manal,
Yes you are making sense!

Sal D.

The subject of heterozygous and homozygous is not very clear to me.  For example having my son as an intermedia. I understand that his two hemoglobin genes are not normal since he took one from me and the other from his father ( also a carrier ) and he is not a major because the abnormality of our genes was not strongly manifested.

I think you understand this better than you realize. 

Intermedia is always a confusing classification and a big part of it is because both heterozygous and homozygous are called intermedia.  Heterozygous means different and homozygous means the same. If you have one thal gene and one non thal gene, then it is heterozygous. An intermedia who is heterozygous has one of each gene, but the thal gene has a severe to complete deletion, resulting in what would be thought of as severe minor, or intermedia. Someone with two thal genes, such as your son, is homozygous. Even though he carries two thal genes, he is fortunate in that he does not have severe deletion of the genes. This results in the more tolerable than major, intermedia condition.

Thanks SaID and Andy.

What is the benefits of knowing whether you are homozygous or heterozgous? Does it make any difference in treatment for example or it is just simply knowing the nature of your genes?

Manal

I think the main difference is knowing what you will pass on to your children. A homozygous thal would always pass on a thal gene and a hetreozygous would have a 50% chance of passing on either a thal or non thal gene. Even if only a 50% chance exists, the children should be tested to see if they are carriers.

I think the symptoms are what is important in thal intermedia, although there is also much more hesitation transfusing a one gene intermedia than would be a two gene carrier, but it is occasionally done.

The difference between homozygous and heterozygous?

Homozygous  -  occurs when the two genes for a trait are the same.
Heterozygous -  occurs when the two genes for a trait are different, also known as a hybrid.

Hope this helps.

Miaki