The First Joint Publication on COVID-19 by SUMS Hematology Research Center and Pediatric and Adolescent Outpatient Clinic in Ferrara, Italy

In collaboration with the researchers of Pediatric and Adolescent Outpatient Clinic in Ferrara, Italy, a team of researchers at Hematology Research Center of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS) has published the first article on Covid-19 in Iranian patients with thalassemia.

In this research project, which was conducted to investigate the prognosis of Covid-19 in patients with beta-thalassemia across the country, all registered patients were examined.

Dr. Mehran Karimi, SUMS elite professor of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, said: "Fortunately, complying with national health protocols, the number of confirmed positive cases and complications of Covid-19 among patients with β-thalassemia were low. However, this does not diminish the necessity of strict adherence to public health instructions during the Covid-19 pandemic.

He added: "This international collaboration, which has been going on for a long time between SUMS Hematology Research Center and the Italian Pediatric and Adolescent Outpatient Clinic, has led to the publication of many scientific research papers including this one. This article entitled “Prevalence and Mortality Due to Outbreak of Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) in β-Thalassemias: The Nationwide Iranian Experience” is now published in the prestigious British Journal of Hematology.