Study of C - reactive protein Levels and Haematological Parameters in Individuals with and without Sickle Cell Anaemia in Abakaliki, Nigeria

Abstract

BACKGROUND Sickle cell anaemia(SCA)is a genetic disorder of haemoglobin and chronic inflammatory state. This study aimedto determine and compareC -reactiveprotein(CRP)levels and bloodcounts in participants with SCA(HbSS) andcontrol (HbAS and HbAA). MATERIALS AND METHODS Across-sectional comparative studywas carried outamong steady-state HbSSindividuals with age-and sex-matched controlfrom August 2019 to February 2020. Using the method described by Charan and Biswasand sickle cell disease prevalence of 3.5%,a sample size of 47was calculated. However, 101participants were recruited using a consecutivesampling technique.An assay of haemoglobin phenotype, CRPleveland some haematological parameters, including haemoglobin level, white blood cell count and platelet count, were done. Data analysis was done usingSPSS software, version 26. RESULTS One hundred and onesubjectsparticipatedinthe study and were made up of51 (50.5%) males and 50 (49.5%) females with an age range of 1 to 52 years. They comprised 58HbSS and 43 controls (23 HbAS and 20 HbAA).There was a significant increase in CRPlevel among HbSS participants(5.4μg/ml±4.5)compared to those of HbAS(0.02μg/ml ± 0.01)and HbAA(0.02μg/ml ± 0.01) (p = 0.000). Correlation between CRP level and blood counts showed weak positive relationship between CRP and WBC count (r = 0.285, P = 0.07)as well as platelet count (r = 0.156, P = 0.336) butnegative correlation between CRP and haemoglobin level(r = -0.073, P = 0.655). CONCLUSION There was a significantly higher CRP levelamong patients with HbSS in a steady state compared to control (HbAS and HbAA individuals). Participants with HbSShada positivebut weakrelationshipbetween CRP and WBC count, CRP and plateletcount anda weak negative correlation between CRP and haemoglobin level. Further studies are required on a broader scale to assess whether CRPlevelmaybe used to predict the occurrence of crisisin patients with SCA.