SICKLE CELL ANEMIA

WHAT IS SICKLE CELL ANEMIA?

• Sickle Cell Anemia is a group of disorders that cause red blood cells to become misshapen and break down

HOW DO YOU GET SICKLE ANEMIA?

• Sickle Cell is genetic
• Two genes from the sickle hemoglobin must be inherited from one parent to be passed down to their offspring
• Hemoglobin is a protein molecule in red blood cells that carries oxygen from the lungs to the body's tissue and returns carbon dioxide from the tissues back to the lungs

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS?

• Pain in bones or joints
• Jaundice
• Delayed puberty
• Low oxygen inside body
• Dehydration
• Blood in urine
• Inflamed fingers or toes

SICKLE CELL TEST

• When someone is first born doctors do several screening test to see if newborns have sickle cell
• Adults and older children can be tested by taking a blood test and checking for hemoglobin S

TREATMENT

• Sickle cell is incurable
• Blood transfusion are used to help with pain and rarely bone marrow transplants are used.

SOURCES

• Mayo clinic