Absence of Increased Frequency of Bone and Joint Disease with Hemoglobin AS and AC

Excerpt

Bone and joint disease with hemoglobin SS, hemoglobin SC, and S-thalassemia has been well documented and includes aseptic necrosis, medullary bone infarcts, periostitis, and articular involvement (1). In sickle cell trait (hemoglobin AS) sporadic cases of aseptic necrosis have been reported (2). No studies of the prevalence of joint abnormalities in sickle trait compared with age-matched controls having AA hemoglobin have, however, been published. We report on such a study of 94 patients with hemoglobin AS, 20 with hemoglobin AC, and 114 controls with normal AA hemoglobin.

All black patients admitted to the Philadelphia Veterans Administration Hospital for 15 months