Oman Mandates Premarital Medical Examinations to Strengthen Preventive Health System

Muscat, The Gulf Observer: The decision to make premarital medical examinations mandatory for all Omanis intending to marry, under Royal Decree No. 111/2025, marks a key pillar of the Sultanate of Oman’s preventive healthcare strategy, aimed at protecting family and community health and reducing the transmission of genetic, hereditary, and infectious diseases to future generations.

Health specialists have emphasized that mandatory premarital screening plays a critical role in early disease detection, easing long-term health burdens on families and the national healthcare system, and supporting national objectives related to family stability and community well-being. The measure comes amid growing health, social, and economic challenges posed by hereditary and infectious diseases.

Dr. Intisar bint Nasser Al Shukri, Consultant in Virology at the Central Public Health Laboratory at the Ministry of Health, said that sickle cell anemia and thalassemia—particularly beta thalassemia—are among the most common and serious hereditary blood disorders in Oman. She explained that these diseases are transmitted through recessive inheritance, meaning a child is affected only if both parents carry the defective gene.

She noted that premarital screening helps identify carriers who show no symptoms. If one partner is a carrier and the other is healthy, children are usually unaffected but may become carriers. However, if both partners are carriers, there is a 25 percent risk in each pregnancy of having a child affected by the disease.

According to Dr. Al Shukri, early detection significantly reduces emotional and financial strain on families associated with chronic illness, repeated hospital admissions, and lifelong treatment. At the national level, she said the annual cost of treating hereditary blood diseases is estimated at around OMR 55 million, covering medications, blood transfusions, surgeries, and bone marrow transplants. Reducing the number of affected births would allow these resources to be redirected to other essential health services.

She added that while medical options such as preimplantation genetic testing are available for carrier couples who choose to proceed with marriage, their high cost, limited availability, and associated risks prevent widespread use.

Dr. Al Shukri also stressed the importance of genetic education in helping couples distinguish between being affected by a genetic disease and being a carrier, thereby reducing social stigma. She noted that education also corrects misconceptions, including the belief that consanguineous marriage is the sole cause of genetic disorders, pointing out that unrelated individuals may carry the same genetic mutations prevalent within the community.

Meanwhile, Dr. Musleh bin Mohammed Al-Muslehi, Senior Hematologist and Head of Laboratories at Ibra Hospital, highlighted the role of premarital examinations in preventing the transmission of infectious diseases between spouses and from mother to child. He said the screening includes tests for HIV, hepatitis B and C, and syphilis.

Dr. Al-Muslehi explained that early detection allows for timely medical intervention and follow-up, reducing complications and limiting disease spread. He emphasized that handling positive cases requires medical accuracy, ethical responsibility, and respect for patient dignity, noting that initial positive results must be confirmed through additional testing before a final diagnosis is made.

Dr. Raya bint Saeed Al-Kamyani, Head of the Pre-Pregnancy Care Department at the National Center for Women and Child Health, said the success of the program is measured by the number of beneficiaries compared to annual marriages, as well as long-term reductions in hereditary blood diseases among newborns.

She noted that beneficiary coverage reached 42 percent in 2024, a level considered insufficient given that the prevalence of hereditary blood diseases stands at 9.5 percent according to the latest national statistics. Mandatory testing is expected to significantly narrow this gap.

Dr. Al-Kamyani added that the Ministry of Health has enhanced infrastructure by providing advanced laboratory equipment, issuing unified national guidelines, training medical and laboratory personnel, and accrediting qualified private health institutions to ensure high-quality services.

She affirmed that the decision is aligned with national strategies for family and community health, reinforcing prevention and early detection as primary public health tools, protecting families, and ensuring the sustainability of Oman’s healthcare system.

The mandate reflects a national commitment to making prevention the first line of defense in public health, enabling informed marital decisions and safeguarding the well-being of future generations in the Sultanate of Oman.