Asian families II: conditions that may be found in the children.

BLOOD DISEASES c thalassaemia is widely distributed throughout the Indian sub- continent, particularly in the north, though it is not nearly so common as in the Mediterranean area. More cases of homozygous fi thalassaemia (thalassaemia major) are now seen in Pakistani families in London than in Greek, Cypriot, and Italian communities (for further discussion on ,3 thalassaemia see article No 5: Families from the Mediterranean and Aegean regions). Moslem parents have more difficulty in accepting the ideas of genetic advice, antenatal testing, and termination ofpregnancy than have parents from Mediterranean areas.