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Sickle Cell Anemia Research Paper

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Even the slightest changes within a single protein may greatly affect the health of a human being and their descendants. Sickle cell blood anemia, or SCA, is a type of blood disorder in which the protein hemoglobin within the affected person have slightly mutated in order to form a sickle shaped cell. This can cause chronic health problems to a patient that has sickle cell anemia since their sickle shaped blood cells may obstruct their circulatory system. Despite this disease being chronic, a patient can only get SCA if they have inherited it. SCA is most commonly inherited by African Americans and Hispanics. In other words, sickle cell anemia is a chronic disease in which a person is born with inherited sickle shaped blood cells. Sickle …show more content…

This disease can cause severe pain and fevers, anemia, circulatory problems, strokes, and even “sudden death.” The sickle cells are able to get caught in the capillaries and disturbs the circulatory system (Eckman 447). When a person has abnormal swelling in their feet and hands, this could be caused by a buildup of “sickle-shaped red blood cells blocking blood flow to the feet and hands.” When sickle cells damage an organ, this can make a patient more “vulnerable” to infections (Mayo Clinic Staff). For example, when red blood cells “get stuck in the spleen,” this causes a splenic sequestration crisis. When this occurs, most of the blood cells are sent to the spleen which leads to less red blood cells being able to circulate in the blood stream. Symptoms of a splenic sequestration crisis include, “shortness of breath” and “having pale …show more content…

The amount of people with cystic fibrosis is about a third of the people who have the sickle cell disease. There are over one hundred care centers for people with cystic fibrosis while there are only around ten for sickle cell disease patients. Older sickle cell patients have “limited access to medications” despite having many visits to the emergency room. Although racism is not the only factor of the “oversimplification” of sickle cell disease, it is clear that people put other genetic illnesses, such as cystic fibrosis, over sickle cell disease (Ellis 1-3). In conclusion, a person with this blood disorder have a lower number of red blood cells and have a lower life expectancy. A patient with SCA may have chronic health problems including circulatory problems, a splenic sequestration crisis, acute chest syndrome, and brain complications. People with SCA are resistant to malaria and can be of different ethnicities including African. Despite being a painful blood disorder, there is much funding going into the research of SCA. Overall, sickle cell anemia is a chronic and inherited blood disease in which a person has “sickle” shaped blood

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