# Sickle Cell - 1 Year Blood Draw



## JMalik (Apr 19, 2014)

Hello all,

We just came back from the 12m well visit for our son and were told by the nurse on the phone that his hemoglobin level was low and that we needed to come back for further testing. She asked me whether either of us had sickle cell ourselves (we don't, at least not to our knowledge) and mentioned that the ped wanted to test for sickle cell as well as iron deficiency and then would determine next steps.

My question is does a regular CBC/lead draw indicate sickle cell or is the ped just being paranoid and covering her bases? I'm pretty sure the PKU newborn screening covered sickle cell (we live in NY) so why would she bring it up now? 

Anyone have something similar with their child?

Thanks for any advice!


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## Fortune Teller (Jan 28, 2013)

Was it a finger-stick hemoglobin that was done? If so, and they got a low result, then yes, they would definitely need to do further testing to determine the cause. A CBC, along with testing for lead and iron deficiency are logical follow up tests in that situation. As for sickle cell, I'm guessing they are just covering their bases, based on your ethnicity. 

You can get a preliminary diagnosis of sickle cell off of a blood smear, which is often done as part of the CBC. I'm not clear if your child already had a full CBC. If so, maybe they saw something on the blood smear that makes them want to do confirmatory testing. 

I do believe sickle cell is part of the newborn screening, but if a child is showing symptoms or abnormal lab results, then I think most physicians would go ahead and test for it, just to cover their bases. Nothing is foolproof. 

Hope some of that helps. I haven't had this experience myself, but am speaking as a medical lab technologist


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## JMalik (Apr 19, 2014)

Thank you so much for your reply and for the info! Yes it was a finger stick.

I just didn't want to put my son through the blood draw unless it was necessary. I will ask if they did a smear. If it's just to confirm iron deficiency, I would much rather just give the iron than do the blood test, ykwim?

Thanks again.

Best,
J


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## Fortune Teller (Jan 28, 2013)

No problem. Best of luck!


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