Sickle Cell Disease Benefits

Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is an inherited blood disorder, in which people have abnormal hemoglobin. This causes a variety of problems for the person throughout their entire life, but severity of the disease varies. Sickle Cell Disease is not necessarily deadly, but it decreases the average life expectancy of a persson. In countries like the United states, a person with Sickle Cell Disease has a life expectancy of about forty to sixty years. Other than stem cell transplants there is no cure for Sickle Cell Disease currently, but if discovered early regular medical care and treatments can not only prolong the life of a person with the disease, it can also improve their quality of life. Cells in tissues need a constant supply of oxygen in order …show more content…
This is a disease that gets worse with time, treatments only help lessen complications or prevent them. Treatment options for people vary depending on how bad their condition is. A stem cell transplant would essentially cure a person with the disease, most people do not meet the qualifications for a transplant and even at that, the procedure is still very risky. Usually the first symptom people with Sickle Cell experience, one of the least severe, is swelling in their feet and hands, caused by blockage in the blood vessels. To treat the swelling, pain medicine is usually prescribed and a doctor will recommend an increase in fluids, drink more water. To prevent sudden painful attacks and a trip to the ER from the blockage, a person with Sickle Cell drink a lot of water, try to keep at a moderate temperature, avoid high altitudes and low oxygen levels. Adults that experience these sudden attacks can take medicine to stop or prevent them. Infection, which children with the disease often experience more of, can be prevented by washing your hands as you should anyways, but vaccines can also prevent