UNDERSTANDING THE SICKLE CELL DISEASE IN CHILDREN (PART II)

The symptoms of the sickle cell disease may vary with individuals, but there are some signs that are common to the sickle cell patients. These common symptoms are presented below.

Periodic Episodes of Pain: It is common for sickle cell children to complain of pains in their legs, hands, etc. The pains are more common with the joints. These pains occur whenever the sickle cells block the free flow of blood to any organ. The frequency of these pains varies from one child to the other. Any stressful condition may trigger these pains or crises.
Swollen feet and hands: The toes and fingers of sicklers may become swollen. Pains may accompany these swellings. It may last for some days before the swelling subsides. The swelling and pain is due to the fact that the sickle cells cannot pass through tiny blood vessels easily. If you enjoy this article, tell someone about it and visit my blog for more articles.
Frequent bouts of infection: In children, the commonest is cough and malaria. Sicklers easily succumb to attack by malaria parasites. This is because the red blood cells are fragile and they are therefore easily destroyed by the malaria parasite, leaving the child anemic.
Anemia: Red blood cells of sickler children do not last long. They only live for about two to three weeks, thus there is need for frequent replacement of these cells. The sickler is therefore chronically and frequently short of enough red blood cells to carry oxygen to various parts of the body.
Stunted growth: Sickler children usually have stunted growth. Nutrients needed for growth are carried round the body through the blood. A shortage of healthy red blood cells can result in slow growth in children. Also, there are indications that nutrients are not fully utilized by the body of sicklers. This is partly responsible for the slow growth. It usually delays puberty in teenage children. These symptoms begin to manifest as from the fourth month after birth. Affected babies may not crawl or walk at the right time. Do you have friends who are sicklers? Refer them to this article and click here for more articles on health matters.
Impaired vision: There are research reports that some sicklers may have impaired vision. This is as a result of the blockage of the blood vessels which supply eyes with blood and nutrients. This leads to a damage of the retina of the eyes, leading to poor vision.

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