Do You Know Your Status with sickle cell disease?

Often, older adults incorrectly reported whether they had sickle cell disease or sickle cell trait. This was true for men and women and was regardless of their level of education. Most adults reporting that they had sickle cell disease were actually persons with sickle cell trait, based on their laboratory results.

How are the traits of sickle cell disease determined?

The combined effects of many genes determine some traits (hair color and height, for instance). Other characteristics are determined by one gene pair. Sickle cell disease is a condition that is determined by a single pair of genes (one from each parent). Inheritance of Sickle Cell Disease

Can a person be born with sickle cell disease?

A person born with sickle cell trait (one sickle cell gene) will always have sickle cell trait. The same is true of sickle cell disease (two sickle cell genes). Sickle cell disease produces illness, while sickle cell trait usually does not. The severity of sickle cell disease can change over time.

How does sickle cell disease affect your body?

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an inherited disorder in which the shape of red blood cells are C-shaped sickles that can get stuck in blood vessels and block them. This blockage is called a pain crisis or sickle crisis. You won’t have total control over how SCD affects your body.

What are the signs and symptoms of sickle cell disease?

Early signs and symptoms of sickle cell disease include swelling of the hands and feet; symptoms of anemia, including fatigue, or extreme tiredness; and jaundice. Over time, sickle cell disease can lead to complications such as infections, delayed growth, and episodes of pain, called pain crises.

What is the life expectancy of someone with sickle cell disease?

Those cells can cause blockages of blood to organs and tissues, debilitating pain, and life-threatening complications. People with sickle cell disease have an average life expectancy of 40 to 60 years.

What does sickle cell feel like?

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a group of inherited disorders in which hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen, becomes hard and sticky and looks like a sickle. The symptoms of sickle cell disease include abdominal pain, bone pain, shortness of breath, delayed growth, fatigue, fever and chest pain.

What is the prognosis for sickle cell disease?

Some people with the disease can remain without symptoms for years, while others do not survive beyond infancy or early childhood. New treatments for sickle cell disease are improving life expectancy and quality of life. People with sickle cell disease can survive beyond their 50s with optimal management of the disease.