Sickle Cell Anemia

Sickle Cell Anemia

Description

Sickle cell anemia is an inheritable form of anemia where there is inadequate healthy blood cells to transport adequate oxygen in the body.it is characterized by rigidity of blood cells where they become sticky and have reduced mobility. The cells are crescent-shaped making them easy to get stuck in small blood vessels reducing the flow of blood to other body organs. The cells limit blood flow and oxygen flow to the rest of the body. People with this condition have abnormal hemoglobin S which is in their red blood cells. Sickle cell disease is the commonly known genetic disease worldwide which is only be detected by a blood test. The disease can start at an early age where a person has reduced immunity which contributes to increased infections. Different people contract the disease differently where others are due to genetic makeup while some are affected by the environment they live in. The disease is characterized by many different symptoms which occur in the form of other diseases. The management of these symptoms differs from one another which require the clinician to understand the cause and the characteristics of the condition. Sickle cell anemia can manifest in many different ways which are detected to know that someone is suffering from a disease related to sickle cell anemia. The disease affects different parts of the body which can lead to failure of some organs. Patients suffering from the condition are diagnosed with various infections which can lead to admission in hospitals and sometimes death. When it is diagnosed at an early age, it can have reduced morbidity and mortality.

Prevalence

Sickle cell anemia is the commonly known inherited blood disorder globally. In the United States, sickle cell anemia affects approximate 100,000 people and the race that is commonly affected is Hispanic Americans. At least 1 of every 16,300 Hispanic Americans and 1 of every 13 black Americans have the trait of Sickle cell anemia. Despite the case, morbidity, a frequency of crisis, the degree of anemia and the organ mainly affected vary from one person to another. Prevalence of sickle cell anemia is high for blacks and countries with black population since that is where malaria is highly prevalent since the sickle cell disease gene is related to malaria. Sickle cell anemia affects males and female equally, and al children have equal chances of contracting the trait. The fact that sickle cell trait is inherited from parents, all children have equal chances of contracting the disease, and that has led to the high prevalence of the disease. The individuals from Hispanic-Americans, Middle Eastern, Indians, Asian, Mediterranean descent and African-Americans are among the greatly affected population with sickle cell anemia due to their susceptibility to the disease. The prevalence of sickle cell anemia is still alarming and require intervention for reduced medical conditions.

Incidence

Although the incidence of sickle cell trait varies from state to state, every stated have people living with the condition, and most of them are not aware of the disease. Since people with sickle cell trait are likely to transmit the gene to their children, therefore they should be screened for sickle cell traits before conceiving so that they can prevent sickle cell anemia. It is important to inform couples on the risks associated with sickle cell disease and the possible health problems related to the disease. In the United States, the estimated sickle cell trait was 15.5 cases per every 1000 births by the year 2010. The incidence has been on the rise although the number of people living with sickle cell diseases is unknown. It is estimated that 100,000 Americans are living with sickle cell trait and out of 13 African-American babies, one of the children is born with sickle cell anemia.

Sickle cell-related deaths among African-American children who are below four years reduced by 42% between 1999 and 2002. The reduction of the incidence was due to a vaccine that was initiated which was aimed to protect individuals from pneumococcal disease. Despite the reduction in the rate, it has increased medical expenditure for both children with Medicaid coverage and those with employer-sponsored insurance. Most of these children have had at least one hospital stay an indication that managing sickle cell anemia can be expensive for the population. Sickle-cell anemia management is expensive and has increased the cost of care in United States healthcare.

Laboratory test

When testing for sickle cell anemia, a blood test is conducted which checks for hemoglobin S in the blood. Hemoglobin S is the defective form of hemoglobin which carries sickle cell anemia. When S hemoglobin is detected, the person is diagnosed to have single cell anemia. In the United States, blood testing is part of the routine activities done to newborn children at hospitals. It is also done to older children and adults at will, but it must be conducted when a child is born to prevent the severity of the disease at an early age. In adults, a laboratory test is done by drawing a blood sample from a vein of the arm, and the sample is tested for the hemoglobin.

For children and babies, the blood sample is collected from the heel or fingers. After the sampled is collected, it is taken in the laboratory for screening. When the screening test is positive, a further test is conducted to determine the number of sickle cell genes in the body of the victims. Besides, additional blood tests can be requested by the doctor to check for low red blood cell count or any possible complication that one can have. To detect if the unborn baby has sickle cell anemia, a sampling of amniotic fluid of the mother is done to detect for the sickle cell gene. Prenatal testing can be tested using chorionic villus sampling, and it is effective in testing sickle cell anemia for the unborn baby. Also, when one has a partner with sickle cell disease, the partner should be screened to test whether the partner has contracted genes.