Abstract
Autoimmune hemolytic anemia may occur in the course of some viral diseases such as Coxsackie virus, cytomegalovirus, Epstein Barr virus, Influenza A, herpes simplex virus, and rarely hepatitis B virus infection. The role of being heterozygous for beta-thalassemia in hemolysis during acute viral hepatitis is not known. In this report, we present an eight-year-old boy with jaundice and anemia. The diagnosis of hepatitis B virus infection and hemolytic anemia were made on the basis of physical and laboratory findings. A hemoglobin electrophoresis revealed that the child was heterozygous for beta-thalassemia. No specific etiology could be found for hemolytic anemia. It remained unclear whether hemolytic anemia in this patient was merely a coincidental finding or whether hepatitis B virus infection and beta-thalassemia trait had played a role in causing hemolysis.
Copyright and license
Copyright © 1994 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.