To evaluate the degree of tissue hypoxia in patients with hemoglobinop
athy H disease, whole blood oxygen affinity was estimated and analyzed
in 33 patients. Twenty patients with Iron deficiency anemia, matched
for degree of anemia, served as controls. The results were as follows:
Whole blood oxygen equilibrium curves of patients with HbH disease ar
e Diphasic because of a combination of the rectangular hyperbolic curv
e of HbH and the normal sigmoid curve of HbA and are shifted toward th
e left (P-50 3.66 +/- 0.33 kPa). Patients with iron deficiency anemia
have right-shifted oxygen equilibrium curves (P-50 4.02 +/- 0.13 kPa)
compared with normal. Oxygen release to the tissues in HbH disease is
decreased (1.4 +/- 0.3 mmol/L) as compared with iron-deficient patient
s (1.6 +/- 0.2 mmol/L) with a similar degree of anemia. Red cell indic
es vary between the two groups. In patients with HbH disease the mean
corpuscular hemoglobin concentration was 268 +/- 17 g/L as compared wi
th 294 +/- 18 g/L in iron deficiency anemia. These findings indicate t
hat whole blood oxygen affinity is a reliable index of tissue oxygenat
ion in patients with hemoglobinopathy H.