Acute Chest Syndrome
What is Acute Chest Syndrome?
Acute Chest Syndrome
Acute chest syndrome is the most common cause of death from patients suffering from sickle cell disease. It is characterized by an unexplainable irritation in the lungs, which is then manifested as an infiltrate in lung x-rays. As it directly affects the lungs and oxygen intake, it can easily take away a patient’s life.
Before knowing about the acute chest syndrome, one must first know about sickle cell disease. Sickle cell disease, or sickle cell anemia is a genetic blood disorder. It is autosomal recessive and incompletely dominant, which means that such cases are very rare. When a person is diagnosed with sickle cell disease, his or her red blood cells assume a sickle shape that is abnormal and rigid. The cell membrane becomes damaged, and then the red blood cell becomes inelastic. Oxygen then becomes hard to pass between the lungs, blood, and different organs.
Acute chest syndrome is non-infectious or non-communicable, meaning you can’t contract it from other people, but rather, you inherit it from your parents. It first manifests as a lung infection. Then the lining of the lungs becomes inflamed. Due to this inflammation, oxygen becomes harder to transport. At this point, the red blood cells start to “sickle” or lose their elastic donut-like shape, assuming a flatter and more elongated shape. This shrivelled shape makes it harder to transport the oxygen through the red blood cells. The loss of oxygen may then lead to death.
The most common symptoms of acute chest syndrome are fever, cough, excessive production of sputum, and shortness of breath. If you know that your family has a history of sickle cell disease, and you are beginning to experience these symptoms, immediately consult your doctor. This disease can be cured with antibiotics when treated in its early stages.