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Patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) often exhibit left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy or pulmonary hypertension, which are usually attributed to cardiac dilatation secondary to anemia. Now, in two observational studies in children and adults, researchers identify new mechanisms in SCD that could lead to cardiopulmonary disease.
In the first study, researchers in the U.S. and the U.K. evaluated 44 children (age range, 4–18 years) with SCD to determine whether sleep-disordered breathing is associated with cardiac abnormality. Polysomnography revealed that 33% of the children demonstrated lower-than-normal oxygen saturation during sleep. Echocardiography revealed a high incidence of cardiac abnormalities: 46% demonstrated LV hypertrophy with …