Sickle+cell+disease

=Sickle cell disease or otherwise known as sickle cell anemia=

By Tyler Gazaway
What is sickle cell disease? Sickle cell disease is a disease in which your red blood cell genotype is ss instead of AA or As. What this means is there is a weird type of hemoglobin protein in your red blood cells. You are actually supposed to have this protein in your red blood cells but, like I said before it is a weird type of hemoglobin. So, since the red bloods cells aren't supposed to have that type of hemoglobin protein some of your red blood cells turn into crescents instead of circles.

How do you get sickle cell disease? You get sickle cell disease from your parents at birth. The way they give it to is through their genes. But, not all parents can give it to you. Your parents have to be carriers. A carrier doesn't have to have sickle cell disease. But, they have to have at least have one sickle celled allele. Also, both parents have to be a carrier not just one of them. In order for you to get sickle cell disease you have to have 2 sickle cell disease geenes because it is a recessive geene.

What are the symptoms of sickle cell disease? People with sickle cell disease usually has an episode or "crises"of painful symptoms every two or three years but everyone with it gets them differently it depends on the severity of the disease. These crises are a painful series of any of the following symptoms: fever, fatigue, paleness, bone pain, rapid heart rate, breathlessness, yellow skin and, or eyes, strokes, chest pain, excessive thirst, headaches, dizziness and cold hand and, or feet. A single episode can last minutes or about a week again depending on the severity of the disease.