Association of HIV infection with clinical and laboratory characteristics of sickle cell disease.

Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a multisystem disorder characterized by a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations and severity. Studies investigating potential effects of co-morbid human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and SCD have produced conflicting results, and additional investigations are needed to elucidate whether the interaction between the two disease states might impact both HIV and SCD clinical outcomes. The association of HIV infection with clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients with SCD was assessed.