Management of chronic viral hepatitis in patients with thalassemia: recommendations from an international panel.

AbstractChelation therapy with new drugs prevents cardiac damage and improves the survival of thalassemia patients. Liver diseases have emerged as a critical clinical issue. Chronic liver diseases play an important role in the prognosis of thalassemia patients because of the high frequency of viral infections and important role of the liver in regulating iron metabolism. Accurate assessment of liver iron overload is required to tailor iron chelation therapy. The diagnosis of hepatitis B virus– or hepatitis C virus–related chronic hepatitis is required to detect patients who have a high risk of developing liver complications and who may benefit by antiviral therapy. Moreover, clinical manage…