Erythrocyte Aggregation and Blood Viscosity is Similar in Homozygous Sickle Cell Disease Patients with and without Leg Ulcers.

 There is no consensus regarding the role of red blood cell (RBC) aggregation in the pathogenesis of leg ulcers (LUs) in sickle cell disease (SCD).  We sought to evaluate whether the cross-sectional determination of RBC aggregation and hematological indices were associated with the presence of LU in homozygous SCD.  Twenty-seven patients with LU and 23 with no history of ulceration were recruited into the study.

Red blood cell deformability is reduced in homozygous sickle cell disease patients with leg ulcers.

Previous reports differ as to whether a decreased elongation index (EI), a proxy for red blood cell (RBC) deformability, is associated with leg ulcers (LU) in people with homozygous sickle cell disease (SCD). We sought to determine whether erythrocyte deformability (ED) and haematological indices were associated with the presence of LU in patients with SCD. The study design was cross-sectional.