A patient with sickle cell disease may develop a number of acute exacerbations termed crises. The number of crises that a patient experiences correlates with disease severity and prognosis.
Types of crises in sickle cell disease:
(1) marrow aplasia
(2) hemolytic anemia
(3) sequestration in
(3a) spleen
(3b) liver
(3c) lung
(4) thrombosis with infarction
(4a) bone pain (localized or generalized)
(4b) pulmonary
(4c) abdominal
(4d) neurological (stroke, etc)
A crisis may be mixed, including two or more types.
A crisis needs to be distinguished from
(1) complications such as cholelithiasis.
(2) concurrent disease like appendicitis or osteomyelitis.
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