The Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust Blood Sciences Laboratory partakes in the NHS Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia (SCT) Screening Programme. The programme uses the family origin questionnaire (FOQ) antenatal screening form along with full blood count (FBC) results to help assess if someone is likely to be a carrier for sickle cell, thalassaemia or another haemoglobin disorder. Requestors should send an FBC sample along with an electronically completed FOQ form to the haematology laboratory. Where appropriate, scientific staff will cascade thalassaemia testing. In high risk cases, partner screening will be offered.
Whole Blood EDTA
FBC samples should have an accompanying, electronically completed, FOQ form.
Please follow this link for FBC units & reference ranges.
Please follow this link for thalassaemia screen units & reference ranges.
The Mean Cell Haemoglobin (MCH) component of the FBC is used along with thalassaemia screening results to determine whether the biological mother is likely to be a carrier of thalassaemia or an abnormal haemoglobin variant.
NHS Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Screening Programme: Handbook for Antenatal Laboratories (2017)
Local test
Where an abnormal haemoglobin variant is identified, the sample will be sent to a referral laboratory for confirmatory testing.
72 Hours
Clinical advice is available from the Screening Midwife team in the first instance (rde-tr.Screening@nhs.net)
