View clinical trials related to Sickle Cell Anemia.
Filter by:The investigators hypothesize that increasing plasma nitrite using dietary nitrate will improve platelet function and red cell deformability and decrease MCHC in patients with sickle cell disease. The investigators will test this hypothesis through administration of daily intake of beetroot juice (Unbeetable - Performance Drink) to patients with sickle cell disease for 28 days. The investigators will evaluate the safety of daily beet root juice intake in patients with sickle cell disease. In addition, the investigators will measure MCHC, red cell deformability, and platelet function (activation and aggregation) in response to daily intake of beet root juice in this patient population.
Sickle cell anemia (SCA) patients experience organ damage that begins at an early age and results in significant morbidity and early mortality. Although all SCA patients share the same genetic mutation, the clinical complications are highly variable with some patients experiencing frequent and severe complications, while others have few serious complications. If SCA severity could be predicted early in life, those patients at greatest risk for complications could receive treatment prior to the onset of organ damage. No general SCA severity predictor or one that can be informative early in life exists. The investigators preliminary research has identified the absolute reticulocyte count (ARC) as a potential early predictive risk marker for SCA complications in pediatric patients. A higher ARC between ages 2 and 6 months of age is associated with an increased risk of hospitalization in the first 3 years of life; the mean ARC for the 36 patients who were hospitalized for SCA complications was significantly higher than that of the remaining 23 in those who were not hospitalized. Moreover, total hospitalizations were nearly three times higher by age 2 years in those infants who had an ARC of > 200 than for those infants whose ARC was <200. The proposed study will determine if ARC can be used as a risk-stratifier in asymptomatic infants with SCA and ascertain its value in targeting hydroxyurea therapy to those infants at highest risk of SCA sequelae.
Sickle Cell disease is caused by an inherited hemoglobin disorder. Healthy red blood cells are discoid and can deform and move through small blood vessels to carry oxygen to all parts of the body. In Sickle Cell disease, as red blood cells circulate and oxygen is released, the deoxygenated abnormal Hemoglobin S can begin to polymerize and cause red cells to become sticky and elongated. These "sickled" red cells are less flexible and will obstruct small blood vessels and prevent normal red cells from circulating freely, which limits oxygen delivery to tissues and organs. This is known as a "sickling crisis" or "vaso-occlusive crisis" and is the leading cause of hospitalization in patients with Sickle Cell disease. Patients suffering from a sickle crisis experience severe pain and are at risk of stroke, heart attack or even death. Current therapy is limited to hydration and symptomatic pain relief. The administration of MP4CO as an adjunct treatment to standard therapy may alleviate pain associated with a sickling crisis and potentially reduce the severity and duration of a crisis. This may shorten the time in hospital and potentially improve the quality of life for patients with sickle cell anemia.
The investigators would like to study the endothelial function in sickle cell patients without pulmonary hypertension in an in vivo method during a steady state condition before and after sildenafil treatment for 1 month, and to study the effects of this nitric oxide donor by measuring the Flow Mediated Dilatation, by measuring endothelial progenitor stem cells colonies, and by measuring the effect of therapy on markers of inflammation (cell adhesion molecules and cytokines).
The purpose of this study is to determine the ocular and non-ocular safety of a single dose of ranibizumab in treating neovascularization secondary to sickle cell retinopathy.
This research is being done to compare the effect of tadalafil with placebo (an inactive substance that looks like the study drug, but should have no effect) on the frequency of recurrent priapism (prolonged erection, unassociated with sexual interest or desire) and the nature of sexual experiences in male patients with sickle cell disease.