Evaluating the Diagnostic and Prognostic Roles of Fibrinogen Degradation Products and C-reactive Protein in Management of Sickle Cell Disease

Abstract

Introduction: Abnormal hemoglobin is a hallmark of sickle cell disease (SCD), a genetic blood abnormality that can cause a number of clinical consequences, such as vaso-occlusive crises and an elevated risk of infection. One potential biomarker for evaluating disease activity and consequences in SCD patients is C-reactive protein (CRP), an acute-phase reactant that is frequently increased in inflammatory conditions. Aim/Objectives: The purpose of this study is to assess the diagnostic and prognostic value of FDP and CRP levels in sickle cell disease patients at the University College Hospital in Ibadan, Nigeria. Among the specific goals are measuring the levels of fibrinogen degradation products (FDP) and CRP in patients with sickle cell disease (SCD), figuring out how demographic characteristics like age and sex affect these measurements, and investigating the relationship between these parameters and clinical symptoms. Methods: There were 131 participants in the descriptive cross-sectional study, including 40 healthy controls and 91 persons with SCD diagnoses. Purposive random sampling was used to gather the data, and independent t-tests, correlation analysis, and descriptive statistics were used to analyze the results at a significance level of 5%. Results: The data suggested that 2.2% of SCD patients exhibited abnormal CRP levels. However, no significant difference was identified in mean CRP levels between SCD patients and healthy controls (p=0.400). However, there was a significant difference (p=0.001) in the mean FDP levels between the two groups. Furthermore, among SCD patients, no discernible relationships between CRP levels and sex or age were discovered. Conclusion: Fibrinogen degradation products levels are suggestive of thrombotic events in this population, whereas CRP levels may not differ substantially between SCD patients and healthy people. The findings imply that when it comes to addressing SCD complications, FDP monitoring may be more clinically useful than CRP. This emphasizes the necessity of more study to develop successful intervention plans based on these biomarkers in order to enhance patient outcomes.