RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Although sickle cell disease has become a recognized etiology of chronic kidney disease (CKD), the sickle cell trait (SCT) variant was until recently believed to be a benign carrier state with little or no effect on the health of affected individuals. However, recent studies now appear to suggest an association between SCT and CKD. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study is to determine the association between SCT (hemoglobin AS) and renal dysfunction among young Nigerian adults. METHODOLOGY: This was a cross-sectional, descriptive study among apparently healthy undergraduates of Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo, southwest Nigeria. Their hemoglobin genotypes were determined using standard alkaline electrophoresis; their blood pressure, anthropometry, serum total cholesterol (TC), creatinine, and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were determined. Data analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) 20 were significant at P < 0.05. RESULTS: Six hundred and two subjects with HbAS (SCT, n = 465) and HbAA (non-SCT, n = 137) were studied. Their age range was 18-30 years with male-to-female ratio 1:3.8. There was no difference in the prevalence of renal dysfunction between SCT and non-SCT subjects (5.1% vs. 5.2%, P = 0.591). There was no increased risk of CKD among subjects with SCT (PR, 0.99 at 95% CI [0.417-2.348]). CONCLUSION: SCT was not associated with increased risk of renal dysfunction among young adults in Nigeria. Further studies are needed to clarify the controversy, especially in Nigeria, with a relatively higher prevalence of SCT.
