Can SCT go away over time?

[thisislyndzey]

Hi,

I just had a question, when I was born my mother was told that I have sickle cell trait, I even saw the paperwork from from the doctor saying this but at 18 when I joined the military and they did their own blood work, they said I didn't have the sickle cell trait. I just wanted to know if this is something that can go away over time or if I was misdiagnosed either when I was born or in the military. Thank you for your time.

R/

Lyndzey

[Wunmi]

SCT and SCD are genetically coded, unless you've had that part of your DNA code rewritten (which is partially possible with todays technology), my money is on misdiagnosis.

[Wanda61]

misdiagnosed

[Wanda61]

misdiagnosed

[DMBBMS]

Hi Lyndzey, I would agree but more likely due to the method is which you were tested. If you are only 18 then it's likely you were spotted at birth potentially due to your parents genetic makeup and presentation of sickle cell trait and/or disease.

When then tested in the military they may have used a Haemoglobin S solubility test (or sickle solubility) if you have a co-existing (and benign) carrier form of alpha thalassaemia (relatively common in multiple population groups) then you may have had sub-detectable Hb S levels for this type of testing.

If you want confirmation ask either the army medics or your local health professional to test by High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) or capillary electrophoresis (CE) and you should get a straight answer either way, Lets hope you are mis-diagnosed now and not at birth as that could mean they may have labelled another child non-sickle cell trait.

Keep the information for the future as if further testing by solubility fails at least you have the correct information, also it's very useful information if you ever plan to have a family.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Dan B

[thisislyndzey in reply to DMBBMS]

Thank you. I was so confused going my whole life knowing I had the trait and had to be careful with having kids to them telling me I don't have it... And in the military when you do have the sickle cell trait you have to have a red tag saying so to make sure they let you get water when you need it in boot camp. I was also stationed in Japan and wanted to climb Mt. Fuji but was scared even though the military said I didn't have it.

I'm going to see if they'll do those test for me that you recommended.

Thank you for your help.

Lyndzey

[DMBBMS]

Glad to be of help Lyndzey peace of mind either way and keep the forum posted, hope all is well.

Dan B

[Luvnuallways in reply to DMBBMS]

Hi Dan. Are u an MD? I'm looking for other MDs who know about trait and crisis

[DMBBMS]

Hi there,

Apologies about the late reply, been on leave. Sorry no I'm not an MD, I'm based in the UK and I'm a Biomedical scientist who has run the haemoglobinopathy diagnostic laboratory for a few years. How come you are looking for these groups?