Sickle-Cell Anemia
Sickle cell anemia is known as a severe and life-shortening disease, yet you may not be aware that it causes temporary episodes of severe pain as well as chronic pain. The skilled team at Kaya Life in Gulfport, Mississippi, specializes in medical marijuana to ease the pain of sickle cell anemia. They provide assessments, determine if you qualify, and support you through the steps for getting your medical marijuana card and improving your life with sickle cell anemia. Call the office or request a consultation online today.
What is sickle cell anemia?
Sickle cell anemia is one of the medical problems caused by sickle cell disease, a group of inherited conditions affecting the red blood cells.
Sickle cell disease affects one of every 365 African American babies. However, the condition may also develop in people with Hispanic, Middle Eastern, Asian Indian, and Southern European ancestry.
Red blood cells take the shape of a narrow crescent (sickle) in people with sickle cell disease. By comparison, healthy red blood cells are round. Sickle cells are also sticky and rigid. As a result, they get stuck in blood vessels, slowing or stopping blood flow.
While healthy red blood cells live for about 120 days, sickle cells break apart and die in 10-20 days. Your body can’t keep up with the rapid cell death, resulting in a red blood cell shortage that reduces the oxygen supply to your body and causes sickle cell anemia.
What symptoms does sickle cell anemia cause?
Sickle cell anemia causes the following symptoms:
- Fatigue
- Episodes of pain (lasting several hours to days)
- Swelling in your hands and feet
- Yellowing of the skin or eyes (jaundice)
- Delayed growth or puberty
- Vision loss
Sickle cell anemia makes children and adults vulnerable to developing frequent, potentially life-threatening infections like pneumonia. It also raises the risk of strokes, even in children.
How is sickle cell anemia treated?
Children need immunizations to prevent pneumonia and other infections and regular ultrasound scans to assess their risk of stroke.
The main treatments for sickle cell anemia include blood transfusions and medications to reduce pain and prevent sickling.
Two new treatments for sickle cell disease in people aged 12 and older were approved in 2023. These treatments use gene editing technology to add or change a gene inside the body.
Why should I consider medical marijuana for sickle cell anemia?
Mississippi has approved medical marijuana for people with sickle cell anemia. Marijuana eases the intense pain episodes that occur when sickle-shaped red blood cells affect circulation through the joints, chest, and abdomen.
Medical marijuana also relieves chronic pain caused by organ and bone damage, helping to avoid opioids and prevent the hospitalization often required during a severe pain episode. Marijuana also reduces the anxiety and depression that usually accompany sickle cell anemia.
Call the caring Kaya Life team or request a consultation online to learn if you qualify to receive medical marijuana.
