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Hormone Detected in Simple Blood Test Identifies
Patients with Sickle Cell Disease
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Brief Description:
A hormone detected in a simple blood test can identify patients with
sickle cell disease who have developed pulmonary hypertension.
Transcript:
Akinso: A hormone detected in a simple blood test can
identify patients with sickle cell disease who have developed pulmonary
hypertension. That same hormone, known as brain natriuretic peptide or
BNP, is a clear predictor of death in adult sickle cell patients according
to a study by the National, Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Dr. Roberto
Machado, lead scientist of the study says this is an important leap forward
in research on sickle cell disease. Machado: These findings are important
I think for many things. One is that we found a blood biomarker, a test
that can be done by ordering a blood test that could sort of suggest
the presence of pulmonary hypertension. More importantly, identify patients
who are at an increased risk of dying. So what does that mean? That means
that we can try and focus on understanding what's happening to these
patients better. We can try and focus on developing new treatments for
these patients. And we can actually make researchers in the field aware
of this complication and aware of these patients, and these patients
could be treated in studies that are actually on going or coming up down
the pike. Specifically looking at how would patients fare when they have
their sickle cell related pulmonary hypertension treated. It's important
because we raise awareness about this problem. We have another tool to
diagnose this problem. And we can sort of provide these patients with
avenues to be treated for us to see if we can improve the quality and
quantity of life of these patients Akinso: Sickle cell anemia is one
of the most common genetic blood disorders in the U.S. About 30 percent
of sickle cell patients have pulmonary hypertension. Pulmonary hypertension
often leads to heart failure and it's a major risk factor for death in
adults with sickle cell disease. Dr. Machado said based on these findings
and other studies, there is a great benefit to screening sickle cell
patients with both echocardiography and blood BNP. This is Wally Akinso
at the National Institutes of Health Bethesda, Maryland.
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| Date: 07/21/2006 |
Reporter:
Wally Akinso |
Sound
Bite:
Dr. Roberto Machado |
Topic:
Sickle Cell, Pulmonary Hypertension |
| Institute(s): NHLBI |
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