Sickle Cell Disease ( Ocd ) - 939 Words

Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is an inherited autosomal recessive condition that causes the red blood cells (RBCs) to be crescent shaped. Sickle cell disease occurs in 1 out of every 400 African Americans births (Field, et al 2009). And according to the Centers of Disease Prevention and Control (CDC), 1 out of 13 African American babies are born with the sickle cell trait (SCT). At the same time SCD is present in only 1 out of 300 Caucasian babies, thus it is considered to be one of the most prevalent genetic health disparities affecting people of African, Indian, Hispanic, and Mediterranean decent (Kotch, et al 2000). In order for a person to have this disease, both parents have to carry the Sickle Cell Trait. This trait is given to the parents by their parents in which one of them has the sickle cell gene â€Å"S â€Å"and the other has the normal â€Å"A† gene. Children are diagnosed with SCD as early as 4 months old and accurately diagnosed by the age of 6 months old. Normal RBCs are disc shaped in which they are able to easily travel throughout the body, especially through the tiniest blood vessels. However, with sickled shaped RBCs, they clump together while flowing through these particularly small vessels, which causes the loss of oxygen throughout the tissues and organs. This monogenetic disease is caused by a point mutation in the ÃŽ ²- globin gene that creates abnormal Hemoglobin S (HbS). There are five different haplotypes for SCD that are classified by their geographical regionShow MoreRelatedRed Blood Cell Is An Essential Treatment For Patients With The Sickle Cell Disease ( Ocd ) Essay1086 Words   |  5 Pages Red Blood Cell (RBC) transfusion is an essential treatment for patients with the Sickle Cell Disease (SCD). Alloimmunization to RBC antigens has remained a challenge due to the difference in antigen prevalence, such as in the case of people of African origin and those of white descendent do not have a similar antigen prevalence. The presence of RH heterogeneity leads to alteration of the representation of the Rh antigen on a patient s RBC hence increasing chances of alloimmunization. To be able