Researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and their collaborators have discovered that sickle cell trait, a carrier state for sickle cell disease, increases the risk of blood clots across diverse human populations. This finding challenges the long-held assumption that sickle cell trait primarily affects individuals of African ancestry.
The study, published in Blood Advances, analyzed data from over 19,000 people with various ancestral backgrounds, making it the largest and most diverse study on sickle cell trait to date. The results show that individuals with sickle cell trait have a 1.45-fold higher risk of venous thromboembolism compared to those without the trait, regardless of their genetic ancestry.
“Because sickle cell trait is often associated with people who identify as Black or African American, it is not widely studied in other populations, a bias that has led to unintended harm for those with sickle cell trait,” explains Vence Bonham Jr., J.D., co-leader of the study and acting deputy director at the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI).
The research also found that people with sickle cell trait have a higher risk of pulmonary embolism, a potentially life-threatening condition where blood clots travel to the lungs. This finding supports previous studies but with a much larger sample size, providing more definitive evidence.
Dr. Rakhi Naik, clinical director for the Division of Hematology at Johns Hopkins University, emphasizes the importance of these findings: “Knowing the risks of blood clots in people with sickle cell trait is important for situations such as surgeries or hospitalizations, which add to the risk of developing serious blood clots.”
This study’s results are expected to help clinicians better assess and manage blood clot risks in patients with sickle cell trait, regardless of their racial or ethnic background. With over 2 million people in the United States carrying sickle cell trait, these findings have significant implications for public health and personalized medicine.
See “Sickle cell trait is prevalent among diverse human populations, study finds” (September 12, 2024)
