WORLD JOURNAL OF ADVANCE
HEALTHCARE RESEARCH

Dr. Amar Verma*, Dr. Nirranjana Sakthivelu, Dr. Manika Verma and Dr. Anita Verma

ABSTRACT

Sickle cell disease is one of the most commonly encountered hemoglobinopathies, widely distributed in tribal populations of Central & Eastern part of India. The prevalence in India ranges between 9 to 22 percent in endemic areas.[1] This disease load calls for the need of identifying the affected children at the earliest possible. Varied clinical presentations of sickle cell disease poses problems in diagnosing during the first encounter. Thus the aim of our study was to identify and observe the different clinical presentations of sickle cell disease in the tribal dominated region of jharkhand. Material and Methods: This study was conducted in pediatric ward of tertiary care unit of Jharkhand state. Subjects included were the cases of sickle cell disease admitted between the months of January to March 2018 Results: Anemia and Vaso-occlusive crisis were the commonest presenting complaint, followed by sequestration crisis. A handful of cases also presented with respiratory tract infections. Rare complications such as hematuria, low back pain and headache were also noted. Conclusion: The study showed that sickle cell disease can present as a manifestation of any systemic involvement and can mimic a large number of other conditions. Thus, it is necessary to have a high index of suspicion & knowledge of multiple clinical presentations, while working in endemic regions to promote early diagnosis of sickle cell disease.

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