These sickled cells become clogged in the small blood vessels and therefore do not deliver oxygen to the tissues. This lack of tissue oxygenation can cause excruciating pain, damage to body organs and even death. SCA is seen most often in Africans and African Americans. However, persons who originated from East Asia, Southern Italy, Saudi Arabia, India, Egypt, South and Central American, Cuba, Greece, and Iran, and Eastern Jews have also been found to have a form of this illness. Symptoms Symptoms usually begin to appear during an infant's first year, as early as six months.
Patients also encounter episodes of pain known as sickle cell crises.
During a crisis, patients experience shortness of breath, nausea, low-grade fever, jaundice and severe pain in the fingers, toes, arms, joints, legs, back, abdomen, and bones. During a crisis, blockage of blood, and therefore, oxygen to the chest and lungs may lead to acute chest syndrome. Damage to the lungs causes severe pain and fever, and produces an abnormal chest X-ray. The lungs' airways narrow, further reducing oxygen delivery. All this leads to an increased risk of infections, which can be fatal.