Sickle Cell Anemia

There have been many researches and tests done on the genetic causes of Sickle Cell Anemia and how it developes, as well as it's effects on the circulatory, muscular, and respiratory systems, as well as it's effects on the joints and other systems of the body, and the complications associated with them. Most of the research has been done to explore on the reasons why it mostly effects the African-American community and people who are from the West Coast of Africa. It has also been known that Sickle Cell Anemia also effects people from the Mediterranean countries (Wethers, 2000) Sickle Cell Anemia is a the most common single gene disorder found mostly among Black Americans (Wethers, 2000). According to scientific research, it affects approximately one in 375 persons of African ancestry. According to one researcher, "Sickle Cell conditions are also found to be in persons from Mediterranean countries also, such as Turkey, the Arabian peninsula, and the Indian subcontinent"( Wethers, 2000, p.1014). Extensive research has also proved that Spanish speaking persons in the United States, plus people from the Caribbean and South and Central America, are also effected by Sickle Cell Anemia (Wethers, 2000) The first case of Sickle Cell Anemia was first published in 1910 by scientists, and has since then been followed by at least six decades of many observations, which include genetic, molecular, and pathologic observations (Wethers, 2000) Large bodies of clinical data has on the evolution of Sickle Cell Anemia from birth has been gathered on studies of children since the 1970's (Wethers, 2000) The United States has studied 3,500 patients

Page 2 with the Sickle Cell disease, and based on these studies, the longevity and quality of life of these patients have greatly improved (Wethers, 2000). It has been researched and proven that Sickle Cell Anemia