Sickle Cell Anemia Essay

Sickle cell disease which in African language is translated to “state of suffering” is caused in the capillaries and slows blood flow and reduces the supply of oxygen to tissues. This disease causes a lot of pain and comes with various complications and serous dangers. Sickle cells are red blood cells that are deformed shaped like sickles (“S”) that are caused by a genetic mutation in the hemoglobin protein. This is a disease that is not contagious but is hereditary, which means it is passed down from ancestor to decedent. Some people can have the disease while their parents only carry a trait. This is because their grandparents either had the trait as well or were diseased. The disease tends to skip generations and can only be determined by looking back at a family’s history of the disease. The symptoms and signs for sickle cell disease vary among different people. But the most common symptom is fatigue. Other symptoms include: Headaches, Jaundice, Pain in extremities Dizziness, and Shortness of breath. The disease also comes with a lot of complications such as: Stroke, Organ damage, Priapism and, blindness. A lot of these are normal complications that a lot of people have heard of and know the just of what they mean but to further explain… Strokes occur if sickle cells block blood flow to an area of your brain. Priapism only occurs in men with the disease. This complication makes male patients experience painful, long lasting erections this is because the sickle cells block the blood vessels in the penis which damages it and leads to impotence. And lastly organ damage is caused by sickle cells blocking blood flow through vessels, immediately depriving organs of oxygen and blood. The most common organ damaged is the spleen which can no longer protect the body from bacteria so people are susceptible to infections. As you can see most/ all complications are caused by sickle cells blocking blood flow in vessels. There are many was to treat a person with sickle cell disease. Some treatments include Blood transfusions, which is when red blood cells are removed from a supply of donated blood then are given to an infected person intravenously. Another treatment includes Stem cell transplant which is also known as a bone marrow transplant. This involves replacing affected bone marrow with healthy bone marrow provided by a donor. Supplemental oxygen which is also another treatment adds

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