G6PD Deficiency: MedlinePlus [NEW TOPIC PAGE]

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G6PD Deficiency: MedlinePlus

 

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National Institutes of Health

G6PD Deficiency

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Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency is a genetic disorder that is most common in males. About 1 in 10 African American males in the United States has it. G6PD deficiency mainly affects red blood cells, which carry oxygen from the lungs to tissues throughout the body. The most common medical problem it can cause is hemolytic anemia. That happens when red blood cells are destroyed faster than the body can replace them.
If you have G6PD deficiency, you may not have symptoms. Symptoms happen if your red blood cells are exposed to certain chemicals in food or medicine, certain bacterial or viral infections, or stress. They may include

• Paleness
• Jaundice
• Dark urine
• Fatigue
• Shortness of breath
• Enlarged spleen
• Rapid heart rate

A blood test can tell if you have it. Treatments include medicines to treat infection, avoiding substances that cause the problem with red blood cells, and sometimes transfusions.

NIH: National Library of Medicine

MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA  

• Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase
• Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency

Related Topics

• Genetics/Birth Defects

National Institutes of Health

• The primary NIH organization for research on G6PD Deficiency is the NIH Office of Rare Diseases

 

Start Here

• G6PD Deficiency (Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase) (For Parents)(Nemours Foundation) 

• Overviews

  • G6PD Deficiency(Chicago Center for Jewish Genetic Disorders)
  • Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Deficiency Overview(Office of Rare Diseases)

• Diagnosis/Symptoms

  • G6PD: The Test(American Association for Clinical Chemistry)

• Related Issues

  • G6PD Deficiency(Department of Defense, Deployment Health Clinical Center) - PDF
  • Jaundice in Newborn Infants (Beyond the Basics)(UpToDate)
  • Types of Hemolytic Anemia(National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

• Clinical Trials

  • ClinicalTrials.gov: Glucosephosphate Dehydrogenase Deficiency(National Institutes of Health)
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• Journal Articles

  References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
  • Article: Case records of the Massachusetts General Hospital. Case 20-2013. A...
  • Article: Oxidative stress and antioxidant defense in Egyptian favism patients.
  • Article: Reassessing an old claim: natural selection of hemizygotes and heterozygotes...
  • G6PD Deficiency -- see more articles
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• Organizations

  • Office of Rare Diseases
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• Children

  • G6PD Deficiency (Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase) (For Parents)(Nemours Foundation)