Genetic Metabolic Disorders High

The prevalence of inherited metabolic diseases in Iran is five times higher than the global rate, said metabolism specialist and premarital genetic counselor Dr Shahla Farshidi. “The global prevalence of inherited metabolic diseases is 1 per 5,000 births, while the figure is 1 per 1000 births in Iran,” she said, IRNA reported. The high rate of consanguineous marriages is the main reason for the problem.  “So far, more than 500 different metabolic diseases have been identified globally and unfortunately most of them are prevalent in Iran,” she added.

Inherited metabolic disorders are genetic conditions that result in metabolism problems. Most people with such disorders have a defective gene that results in an enzyme deficiency.