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Sickle Cell 101
Welcome from your guide to this lesson.1 Quiz -
Knowledge Matters: You Must Be Your Own Health Literate Advocate
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Who Is Affected by Sickle Cell Disease?
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What Causes Sickle Cell Disease?
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What is sickle cell disease?
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What Health Problems Do Sickle Cell Disease Cause?
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How Is Sickle Cell Disease Treated?
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Living with Sickle CellIs There a Cure for Sickle Cell Disease?
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Six Steps to Living Well With Sickle Cell Disease
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Emergency Guide: When to See the Doctor
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Five Tips to Help Prevent Infections
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Coping With Stress
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Fifteen Reasons Why Exercise Is Good
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Tools for Managing your HealthWhy should we live by this toolkit?
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Where Can I Find and Print the Forms for My Self-Care Toolkit?
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How Often Should I Update the Information in My Self-Care Toolkit? Teach me about the App.
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Who Should Know About My Self-Care Toolkit?
Quizzes
What Is Sickle Cell Disease?
Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a group of inherited red blood cell disorders.
Healthy red blood cells are round and they move through small blood vessels carrying oxygen to all parts of the body.
For someone with SCD, the red blood cells become hard and sticky and look like a C-shaped farm tool called a “sickle”.
Sickle cells die early in comparison to non- sickle cells, which causes a constant shortage of red blood cells.
Sickle cells can get stuck in small blood vessels and block the flow of blood and oxygen to organs in the body. These changes in cells can cause repeated episodes of severe pain, organ damage, serious infections, or even stroke.