Wellbeing Compass #279 — Thalassemia & Mental Health
WC #279 is live: Thalassemia & Mental Health across 12 languages. Jaafari et al. 2022 meta-analysis of 18 Iranian studies (N=3,053 beta-thalassemia major patients) finds 42% pooled depression prevalence (95% CI 33–52%) — severity mild 16% / moderate 13% / severe 13% / extremely-severe 3%. Highest-quality-only still 39% (CI 27–51%). Behdani et al. 2015 case-control (N=60 TM children vs peers): 26.7% depression-positive, elevated anxiety, lower QoL; 66.7% visible facial changes, 46.7% skin discoloration; parent-child reports converge on emotional/social but diverge on conduct/peer domains — “ask your child directly.”
URL thalassemia-mental-health.html. Related: chronic-illness, medical-trauma, body-image, caregiver-burnout. Prior #278 burn injury recovery.