1)What is the significance of a lower-than-normal hematocrit? What is the effect of a bacterial infection of the hematocrit? Can cause bleeding destruction of red blood cells causing sickle cell anemia and an enlarged spleen it can also cause decreased production of red blood cells which in turn can cause cancer and bone marrow suppression. Nutritional problems as well as over hydration are caused by lower-than-normal hematocrit levels. Bacterial infection may lower your hematocrit levels.…
Sickle cell anemia affects people with African, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and Indian ancestry (Scientific American). Sickle cell anemia occurs when a person inherits two sickle cell gene, one from each parent, that cause the red blood cells to change and become crescent shaped. The underlying problem involves hemoglobin, a component of the red blood cells. Hemoglobin is a protein molecule in red blood cells that carries oxygen from the lungs to the body’s tissues and returns carbon dioxide from the tissues to the lung. In sickle cell anemia, the hemoglobin is flawed (The New York Times). As a result, the cells become sickle shaped and can’t travel as easily through blood vessels. Sickle cell anemia is an illness, which has one primary cause, but a variety of symptoms and treatments (Scientific American.) Like some illnesses, sickle cell anemia has one primary cause. In order for sickle cell anemia to occur is when a sickle cell gene have, been inherited from both the mother and the father, so that the child has two sickle cell gene. The sickle cell gene causes the body to make abnormal hemoglobin. As mentioned above, hemoglobin is a protein molecule in red blood cells that carries oxygen from the lungs to the body’s tissues and returns carbon dioxide from the tissues to the lungs. A person with normal red blood cell will have hemoglobin A; however, a person with sickle cell disease will have hemoglobin S…
1. Sickle cell disease is a group of disorders that affects hemoglobin, the molecule in red blood cells that delivers oxygen to cells throughout the body. People with this disorder have atypical hemoglobin molecules called hemoglobin S, which can distort red blood cells into a sickle, or crescent, shape.…
Sickle cell anemia is the most common form of sickle cell disease which is an inherited, autosomal recessive disorder that causes an abnormal hemoglobin cell. The person with this specific disorder inherited hemoglobin S from both parents, also known as homozygous (Lewis, Dirksen, Heitkemper, & Bucher, 2014, pp. 644-647). This hemoglobin S results from the substitution of valine for glutamic acid on the B-globin chain of hemoglobin, and this ultimately causes the erythrocyte to stiffen and elongate taking a sickle shape in response to low oxygen levels (Lewis et al., 2014, pp. 644-647). Due to the sickle cells elongated shape, and its stiff and sticky consistency it tends to get stuck in capillaries and vessels, and blocks blood flow to limbs and organs (Lewis et al., 2014, pp. 644-647). The major problems with sickle cell anemia is due to their sickled shape, reduced life expectancy and their ability to carry enough hemoglobin or transport it properly to…
There’s a reduced RBC count, elevated WBC count, and a reduced hematocrit because of the shape of the RBC. The sickle cell anemia causes the RBC to have a different shape; a crescent and rigid shape and there are not a lot of them. So because of that, there’s more WBC and a reduced hematocrit. Also, the lack of RBC means less oxygen and causes infections so the WBC can fight off the infections.…
Sickle cell disease is an inherited disorder in which red blood cells are abnormally shaped. This abnormality can result in painful episodes, serious infections, chronic anaemia, and damage to body organs.…
In people homozygous for hemoglobin S, the presence of long-chain polymers of hemoglobin S distort the shape of the red blood cell from a smooth doughnut-like shape to ragged and full of spikes, making it fragile and susceptible to breaking within capillaries. Carriers have symptoms only if they are deprived of oxygen or while severely dehydrated. The sickle-cell disease occurs when the sixth amino acid, glutamic acid, is replaced by valine to change its structure and function; causing the hemoglobin to collapse on itself occasionally. When enough hemoglobin collapses on itself the red blood cells become…
Sickle Cell Anemia, also known as Sickle Cell Disease, is a disease that causes the production of abnormal hemoglobin. The red blood cells (RBCs) carry oxygen to organs and tissues. Hemoglobin, a molecule in the RBCs, is a protein that attaches to the oxygen in the lungs and carries it to all parts of the body. Hemoglobin takes on the oxygen, and releases carbon dioxide, a process known as oxygenation. In the tissues, deoxygenation occurs where the processes is reversed, when hemoglobin releases oxygen and takes on carbon dioxide. When the RBCs are healthy, they can easily move through the tiniest blood vessels throughout the body because of their flexibility. The hemoglobin S is fragile and abnormal in Sickle Cell Anemia, and the RBCs are pointy with a shape like the alphabet letter "C" or the crescent moon. This makes the RBCs difficult to move pass through the blood vessels. The RBCs become hard, and can get stuck in blood vessels, and often clog the spleen. This causes pain, infection, and poor blood flow in patients that have Sickle Cell Anemia. The RBCs also block blood flow to organs, such as the heart, lungs, brain, etc., which can lead to stroke, damage to organs, especially the spleen, acute chest syndrome, disability, and sometimes, even death.…
The Black Death started in 1347 and raged on for some years, wiping most of Europe as it spread. Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375) wrote of the plague’s symptoms: swellings or tumors in the armpits and groin, which led to blackness on different parts of the body. There’s no doubt that the Europeans had their own opinion on the cause of the plague and how to contain it. The Black Death was a plague that very unfamiliar to the victims.…
Sickle cell disease is an autosomal recessive genetic disorder most common in African Americans, which results from a mutation affecting the amino acid sequence of the beta chains of hemoglobin molecules in red blood cells. The abnormal hemoglobin which causes the red blood cells to sickle is called hemoglobin S. Sickling occurs when the red blood cells are deoxygenated causing the cell to have a hard curved crescent shape. Due to their shape the sickle cells can become trapped in blood vessel walls causing a circulatory blockage and could cause tissues to become oxygen deprived, pain, infection, and organ damage. Red blood cells in sickle cell disease also have a life span of 10 to 20 days compared to normal red blood cells of 120 days; because of this shortened life span chronic hemolytic anemia occurs (Thompson, 2012). All together sickle cells disease causes a dramatic decrease in the quality of life that can lead to early death, the absolute need for medical intervention, and transplantations.…
Spherocytosis is a condition that affects red blood cells. People with this condition typically experience a shortage of red blood cells which is anemia, yellowing of the eyes and skin also known as jaundice, and an enlarged spleen which is called splenomegaly. Most newborns with spherocytosis have severe anemia, although it improves after the first year of life. Splenomegaly can occur anytime from early childhood to adulthood. About half of affected individuals develop hard deposits in the gallbladder called gallstones, which typically occur from late childhood to mid-adulthood.…
Sickle cell is inherited and is normally only found in Black Americans. The blood cells are shaped differently and it due to a genetic defect. (WebMD, 2014) This causes the blood cells to eliminate themselves rather quickly causing lack of oxygen to the organs in the body. The reason this disease is so painful is because the blood cells become trapped in the blood vessels. (WebMD, 2014)…
Sickle cell anemia or also known as sickle cell disease is a hereditary genetic disease defined by the presence of odd shaped crescent-shaped red blood cells instead of the regular round disc like shape cells. Red blood cells transport oxygen from the lungs to various other organs and tissues with the help of a protein called hemoglobin. The main cause of sickle cell disease is when hemoglobin mutates into an abnormal type called hemoglobin S. The presence of Hemoglobin S causes red blood cells to be sickle-shaped and rigid, making it more difficult for them to flow through blood vessels in the body to deliver oxygen. Therefore, the sickled cells latch onto the walls of various blood vessels throughout the body, resulting in blocked blood flow that can lead to organ damage, pain and infections…
During the 13th century, three diseases collectively known as the Black Plague ran rampant throughout the civilized world of the time, including Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. The plague had a remarkably high mortality rate, striking fear in the hearts of all who heard of it. Political systems crumbled in the face of this natural disaster. In this time of government turmoil, people turned to religion for hope. This united the public, and even if the religion did not serve to provide hope to the people, it consolidated people into a single group with similar mindsets. Depending on a person’s religion, their reactions and responses to the plague differed. Some saw it as having a divine origin, some saw it as being the cause of bad…
When the brain is affected, they could have seizures, vomiting, confusion, headaches, or loss of muscle control. This type of leukemia also can disturb other bodily origins such as the digestive tract, kidneys, lungs, heart, or testes. Other signs and symptoms of acute leukemia may include; bleeding gums, bone pain, fever, night sweats, weight loss, excess bruising, frequent infections, or severe nosebleeds, lumps and swollen lymph nodes in or around the neck, abdomen or groin, shortness of breath, pale skin, fatigue/weakness or decreased energy level. Many symptoms and signs of acute leukemia are those of the flu. However, the flu like symptoms will improve but acute leukemia symptoms get worse very fast and make you feel sick right away. Certain signs and symptoms might indicate that someone may have acute leukemia, or if results from a physical exam suggest leukemia. A doctor will need to check both blood and bone marrow cell samples to be sure of the diagnosis. Other cell and tissue samples may also be taken in order to help guide treatment. The most common blood work you will have done during treatment is called a complete blood count, or CBC. Blood is made up of nutrients, proteins, water, and living cells. A complete blood count lets your doctor know about the cells in your blood. A CBC measures the 3 basic types of blood cells: white and red blood along with a platelet…