DECREASED HEART RATE VARIABILITY IS ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED CARDIAC IRON DEPOSIT DETERMINED BY CARDIAC T2* MRI AND DECREASED LEFT VENTRICULAR FUNCTION IN TRANSFUSION DEPENDENT THALASSEMIA PATIENTS

Abstract

Background: Early detection of iron overload cardiomyopathy is an important strategy to decrease the mortality rate of patients with transfusion dependent thalassemia (TDT). Although cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) T2* is effective in detecting cardiac iron deposition, it is costly and not