{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,9]],"date-time":"2026-05-09T05:12:46Z","timestamp":1778303566704,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":0,"publisher":"Pakistan Medical Association","issue":"05","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,20]],"date-time":"2026-04-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1776643200000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["J Pak Med Assoc"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Objective: To evaluate bone mineral density in children and adolescents with beta-thalassemia major.\nMethod: The retrospective, cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted from October 30 to November 15, 2024, at Peshawar General Hospital, Peshawar, Pakistan, and comprised data from January to August 2024 of paediatric beta-thalassemia major patients aged 2-18 years. Bone mineral density and Z-scores were evaluated\u00a0using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scans of the lumbar spine, proximal femur and distal radius. Data was analysed using SPSS 25.\nResults: Of the 281 patients with mean age 6.92\u00b13.74 years, 176(62.6%) were boys and 105(37.4%) were girls. The mean bone mineral density for proximal femur was 0.59\u00b10.14g\/cm\u00b2, for lumbar spine 0.53\u00b10.14g\/cm\u00b2and for distal radius 0.35\u00b10.09g\/cm\u00b2. Corresponding Z-scores were -0.41\u00b11.81, -0.48\u00b11.79, and -2.99\u00b11.97. Low bone mass prevalence was 36(18.9%) at proximal femur, 43(16.4%) at lumbar spine, and 76(62.3%) at distal radius. Age negatively correlated with Z-scores at proximal femur (r=-0.27, p=0.001) and distal radius (r=-0.19, p=0.03). Male subjects had higher bone mineral density and Z-scores at the proximal femur than females(p=0.04).\nConclusion: The reduction was significant in bone mineral density, particularly at the distal radius, in paediatric patients with beta-thalassemia major. The negative correlation between age and bone mineral density underscored the importance of early and continuous bone health monitoring in such patients.\nKey Words: Beta-thalassemia, Bone mineral density, Osteoporosis, Paediatric.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.47391\/jpma.22893","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,1]],"date-time":"2026-05-01T19:14:47Z","timestamp":1777662887000},"page":"700-703","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Bone density unveiled: Investigating the effects of beta-thalassemia major on growing children and adolescents"],"prefix":"10.47391","volume":"76","author":[{"given":"Shah Jehan","family":"Alam","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Saleel","family":"Ahmed","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"family":"Ummara Siddique","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"family":"Muhammad Asif","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"family":"Syeda Komal Siraj","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"family":"Arfa Khan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"26547","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,20]]},"container-title":["Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/jpma.org.pk\/index.php\/public_html\/article\/download\/22893\/4755","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/jpma.org.pk\/index.php\/public_html\/article\/download\/22893\/4755","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,9]],"date-time":"2026-05-09T04:42:13Z","timestamp":1778301733000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/jpma.org.pk\/index.php\/public_html\/article\/view\/22893"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,20]]},"references-count":0,"journal-issue":{"issue":"05","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,1]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.47391\/jpma.22893","relation":{},"ISSN":["0030-9982","0030-9982"],"issn-type":[{"value":"0030-9982","type":"electronic"},{"value":"0030-9982","type":"print"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,20]]}}}