1.
Rev. méd. Chile
;
139(9): 1192-1195, set. 2011. ilus
Article
in Spanish
| LILACS
| ID: lil-612244
ABSTRACT
Drepanocytic anemia is an uncommon hereditary disease in Chile. The heterozygous state of drepanocytic anemia or "sickle trait" has a frequency of 8 percent among Afro-Americans. A small number of patients carrying hemoglobin S are homozygous, with clinical manifestations of hemolytic anemia and thrombotic disease. Sickle trait is usually asymptomatic. We report a 59-year-old male who presented an acute abdominal pain and dyspnea while staying at high altitude. Six days later, an angio CAT scan showed the presence of a subcapsular splenic hematoma that was managed conservatively. Sickle cell induction with sodium metabisulphite was positive. Hemoglobin electrophoresis confirmed the sickle trait.