Sickle Cell Disease in the Dental Chair

Sickle-cell disease (SCD) refers to a group of genetic blood disorders that impact hemoglobin — an oxygen-carrying protein in red blood cells (RBCs) — leading to multisystem morbidity and reduced life expectancy. One of the most common severe genetic disorders worldwide, SCD affects about 100,000 people in the United States.^1,2 SCD occurs in approximately one out of every 365 Black or African American births and one out of every 16,300 Hispanic American births.²

While the disease can exist in people of all races and ethnicities, it is particularly common among those whose ancestry originates where malaria is or was common, including Sub-Saharan Africa, South America, the Caribbean, Central America, Saudi Arabia, India, and Mediterranean countries. ^2,3 The prevalence of SCD is highest in Sub-Saharan Africa, with an estimated 230,000 affected children born each year compared to 2,600 and 1,300 affected births in North America and Europe.^1,2

SCD is an umbrella term encompassing several forms of the disease with the most common being homozygous hemoglobin SS, also known as sickle cell anemia (SCA). Other forms of SCD are heterozygous conditions, commonly referred to as sickle cell trait (Table 1).^1,3

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* References and figures can be found in the original article via the link above.