Smoking out sickle cell.Researchers from the University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis, commonly known as UC Davis, is one of the ten campuses of the University of California, and was established as the University Farm in 1905. , have found that children with sickle cell disease sickle cell disease or sickle cell anemia, inherited disorder of the blood in which the oxygen-carrying hemoglobin pigment in erythrocytes (red blood cells) is abnormal. who were exposed to environmental tobacco smoke environmental tobacco smoke (ETS/passive smoke), n the gaseous by-product of burning tobacco products, including but not limited to commercially manufactured cigarettes and cigars; contains toxic elements harmful to the health of adults and children (ETS) at home had more than twice as many episodes of pain (known as "crises") as sickle cell patients who were not exposed. Sickle cell crises involve vaso-occlusive pain, acute chest syndrome acute chest syndrome Hematology A complex seen in Pts with sickle cell anemia–SCA Clinical Fever, tachycardia, chest pain, leukocytosis, and pulmonary infiltrates; it is the most common cause for hospitalization in SCA and is due to vascular occlusion and/or , and stroke, and often require hospitalization. In the study, crises were not influenced by other factors such as age or type of sickle cell disease. Reporting in the December 2003 issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, the researchers estimate that ETS exposure increases the risk of crisis by 90% among children with sickle cell disease. |
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