Factors associated with growth and blood pressure patterns in children with sickle cell anemia: Silent Cerebral Infarct Multi-Center Clinical Trial cohort

Abstract

Individuals with sickle cell anemia (SCA) exhibit delayed growth trajectories and lower blood pressure (BP) measurements than individuals without SCA. We evaluated factors associated with height, weight, and BP and established reference growth curves and BP tables using data from the Silent Cerebral Infarct Multi-Center Clinical (SIT) Trial (NCT00072761). Quantile regression models were used to determine the percentiles of growth and BP measurements. Multivariable quantile regression was used to test associations of baseline variables with height, weight, and BP measurements. Height and weight measurements were collected from a total of 949 participants with median age of 10.5 years [Interquartile range (IQR) 8.2-12.9] and median follow-up time of 3.2 years (IQR 1.8-4.7, range 0-12.9). Serial BP measurements were collected from a total of 944 and 943 participants, respectively, with median age of 10.6 years (IQR = 8.3-12.9 years), and median follow-up time of 3.3 years (IQR = 1.7-4.8). Multivariable quantile regression analysis revealed that higher hemoglobin measurements at baseline were associated with greater height (P < 0.001), weight (P = 0.000), systolic BP (P < 0.001), and diastolic BP (P = 0.003) measurements. We now provide new reference values for height, weight, and BP measurements that are now readily available for medical management.