Donald J Brambilla, Scott T Miller, Robert J Adams
BACKGROUND: Children with sickle cell disease (SCD) are at elevated risk of stroke. Risk increases with blood flow velocity in selected cerebral arteries, as measured by transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasound, and use of TCD to screen these patients is widely recommended. Interpretation of TCD results should be based on knowledge of intra-individual variation in blood flow velocity, information not currently available for sickle cell patients. PROCEDURES: Between 1995 and 2002, 4,141 subjects, 2-16 years old, with homozygous SCD or Sbeta0-thalasemmia and no history of stroke were screened with TCD, including 2,018 subjects screened in one clinical trial (STOP), 1,816 screened in another (STOP 2), and 307 screened in an interim ancillary prospective study...
September 2007: Pediatric Blood & Cancer