Pregnancy in thalassemia, anesthetic implication and perioperative management- A narrative review

Abstract

Advancement in the treatment of thalassemia has increased the life span of female patients, with the result that they are reaching the reproductive age group and expecting childbirth. Anesthesia is challenging in such patients due to ineffective erythropoiesis and multiple system involvement as a result of iron overload and chelation therapy. Careful management of the preconception phase, various conception strategies, and multidisciplinary management of pregnancy and childbirth can lead to a healthy and successful outcome of pregnancy. This review provides an overview of the pathophysiology and clinical manifestation of alpha and beta-thalassemia in pregnancy and its successful management. All available literature related to thalassemia was searched in major databases like PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Google Scholar. Original articles, review articles, book chapters, guidelines, case reports, and correspondence were reviewed for pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, and anesthetic management of thalassemia during pregnancy with keywords like thalassemia, Cooley's anemia, thalassemia and pregnancy, anesthetic management of thalassemia, labor analgesia in thalassemia, and transfusion in thalassemia.