A blood test can check for hemoglobin S — the defective form of hemoglobin that underlies sickle cell anemia. In the United States, this blood test is part of routine newborn screening done at the hospital. Mayo clinic
Fix this part………..it may not be until the child is roughly 5 months of age before it is discovered. That is when the fetal …show more content…
Both of his parents are carriers though neither one has the disease itself. Also, NH is the only child in his family to have it. With treatment, life expectancy is for a person to live a fairly healthy life until his/her 40’s to 60’s. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0063048/ Treatment may include bone marrow stem cell transplants and medications such as folic acid (aids in the production of new red blood cells), prophylactic antibiotics to prevent bacterial infections, pain relieving medications and hydroxyurea is a medicine that has been shown to decrease several complications of SCD. Stem cell transplants (A stem cell transplant, also called a bone marrow transplant, is a procedure that infuses healthy cells, called stem cells, into the body to replace damaged or diseased bone …show more content…
Currently while suffering from sickle cell crisis, NH is taking oxycodone, Toradol, acetaminophen, and morphine as well as a continuous IV drip of D5 ½ NS, KCL. Due to the opioids and level of pain NH has endured the last 4 days (since beginning of crisis) he is exhausted and considered a fall risk. He naps off and on throughout the day and only gets out of bed to use the restroom.
The discharge plan is to wean NH from the IV opioids. He reports his pain level to be a 5 out of 10 and has only pushed the PCA one time in the last 8 hours. NH reports that he is not always compliant with his medications. It has been verified that NH has health insurance, lives at home with both parents and younger siblings and attends a local high school and goes to church regularly Further investigation revealed that he is not sure what each medication is for and not aware of the benefits of each. He also reports that he doesn’t know much about sickle cell disease. During the time of the interview, NH had not had a visitor in the past 48 hours. He reports that his mother is eight months pregnant and is busy with the other children and his dad is working. There appears to be a knowledge deficit regarding the disease process and treatment needs. Social work has been called to see how this family can be more involved in the healthcare of NH. A