Phitsanulok population: the highest incidence of hemoglobin E in the northern provinces of Thailand and PND counseling.

Phitsanulok is a province situated in the southern part of northern Thailand. Studies of hemoglobinopathies of 2,806 individuals during the period 1988-1990 showed an overall incidence of hemoglobinopathies of 38.89%, with HbE as high as 25% which is the highest incidence of HbE in the North of Thailand. Buddhachinaraj Hospital conducted a maternal screening study on 1,015 pregnant women in 1991 as part of a prevention/control program and found that 22.56% (229 women) had hemoglobinopathies. Of those, 102 (44.54%) individuals (83.33% HbE heterozygotes and 8.82% HbE homozygotes) with their spouses participated in a prenatal diagnosis (PND) counseling program; 100% of the females and 96% of the male were willing to accept PND; 71% of the females and 75.6% of the males had no moral objection in PND.