A comparison of mean corpuscular volume (MCV) between thalassemia-carrier and non-thalassemia-carrier pregnant women receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART)

Post-HAART exposure, MCV increased substantially in both the thalassemia and non-thalassemia carriers. Using MCV <80 fL as the cutoff for diagnosing thalassemia, false negative results were observed in two thirds of the thalassemia carriers who were exposed to HAART for at least 4 weeks; therefore, the screening test should be interpreted with caution.