Insulin-like growth factor-1 levels in children with Beta-thalassemia minor.

OBJECTIVE Growth retardation in children with b-thalassemia major is multifactorial. Some etiologies described for this condition are hemochromatosis, disturbed growth hormone (GH) / insulin growth factor-1 (IGF-1) axis, undernutrition and hypermetabolism. It has also been proven that growth retardation is present in b-thalassemia major children despite regular transfusion and chelation. Our aim was to evaluate the level of IGF-1 in b-thalassemia minor subjects and compare it with that in healthy children. METHODS Fifty children aged 6 months to 15 years with b-thalassemia minor (32 males, 18 females) and 50 age- and sex-matched normal healthy children were selected. Medical history was taken and complete physical examination was done in each case; IGF-1 level was checked in all cases. This study was done in Shiraz, southern Iran, during 2005. RESULTS IGF-1 levels were significantly lower in b-thalassemia minor children than normal children (P = 0.015). This result demonstrates that some etiologies of growth failure in b-thalassemia major other than those described to date can exist, which may be shared with b-thalassemia minor in feature or may be transformed by genes that are either expressed or not. CONCLUSION We conclude that in addition to that observed in b-thalassemia major, IGF-1 level is also decreased in b-thalassemia minor, and these two may have similar etiologies.