Health-Related Quality of Life in Iranian Patients with Thalassemia Major: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Thalassemia is the most common genetic disorder in Iran. High treatment costs, the use of iron chelators, comorbidities and periodic visits affect the quality of life in these patients. The present study was conducted to assess the quality of life, according to the Short healthy survey (SF-36), in Iranian patients with thalassemia major. Materials and Methods: In this meta-analysis, search was done in national and international databases, including SID, MagIran, Google Scholar, Web of Science, Medline (via PubMed), and Scopus until March 2018. The searched papers were screened and summarized by two independent reviewers. Based on the heterogeneity among the studies, the data were analyzed using the random effects model. Data were analyzed using STATA version 14.0. Results: Data from 18 studies, including 2,897 patients (age group 12-45 years old); were entered in the final analysis. The mean mental component scale in patients with thalassemia major (57.30; 95% confidence interval: 50.31-64.30) was lower than the mean physical component scale (62.77, 95% CI: 52.63-70.91). The mental component scale increased significantly between 2009 and 2017 (as the year of publication increased) (P = 0.043). The highest (74.77), and lowest (60.94) subscale scores of quality of life were related to physical functioning and general health, respectively. Conclusion Patients with thalassemia major have a relatively low quality of life. Providing strategies for improving the quality of life in this group of patients (particularly in terms of mental components) seems necessary.