OBJECTIVE To study the value of iron metabolism indices, serum iron (SI), total iron blinding capacity (TIBC) and transferring (Tf), in thalassema. METHODS The serum samples from 9 children with silent alpha thalassema, 56 with standard alpha thalassema, 26 with HbH disease, 40 with beta+ thalassema, 56 with beta0 thalassema, 45 with iron deficiency anemia (IDA) and 70 healthy children were detected for SI, TIBC and Tf levels. RESULTS The SI level increased (p<0.01), while the TIBC level decreased significantly in the beta0 thalassema group compared with those in the other groups (p<0.05 or 0.01), but the Tf level was not different. The Tf level of both the silent alpha thalassema and the standard alpha thalassema groups was statistically lower than that of the healthy group (p<0.01), but the levels of SI and TIBC were similar to the healthy group. Though the SI level of the HbH disease group was similar to the healthy group, the TIBC and Tf levels were statistically lower (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS Compared with Tf, SI and TIBC are better indices for monitoring iron loading in children with thalassema. The increased SI level and decreased TIBC level are two indices for the diagnosis of beta(0) thalassema in children with cellule anaemia.