News on Blood Disorders and Blood Safety

Newborn blood spot (heel prick) test (the Guthrie' test). A physician performing the pinprick puncture in one heel of a newborn to collect their blood to screen for inborn errors of metabolism.
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Research Feature
Soon after birth, a baby in the United States is tested for sickle cell disease, the often-devastating genetic blood disorder affecting more than 100,000 Americans and 20 million of people worldwide. If positive, that newborn typically begins a course of treatment that can greatly prolong life and help stave off complications of the disease. But in...
Image of the cover of the January edition of the Transfusion journal
Credit: Transfusion journal
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Research Feature
Every two seconds someone in the United States needs blood. Five million people receive a blood transfusion every year in the U.S. In a country where blood is perennially in short supply, it is the most common medical procedure of all. Yet giving to a blood bank is not always a slam dunk—some people get turned away because of strict rules meant for...
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Media Availability
WHAT: A scientist from the National Institutes of Health will present promising, early results from a human clinical trial testing a novel gene replacement therapy in people with severe sickle cell disease. Preliminary findings suggest that the approach has an acceptable level of safety and might help patients consistently produce normal red blood...
Microscopic image of sickle cell
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Research Features
More than 100,000 people in the United States and an estimated 20 million worldwide suffer from sickle cell disease, a group of inherited, often life-threatening blood disorders that wreak havoc on the body. Mainly affecting African-Americans, Hispanics and Asians, the disease is caused by a [embed type:node embed_type:glossary_term id:84178 plural...
Cure Sickle Cell.
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Research Feature
When the NHLBI announced the launch of the Cure Sickle Cell Initiative on September 13, many in the sickle cell disease community responded with enthusiasm. Patients, family members, and advocates took to social media and other channels to say they are ready to do their part, starting with spreading the news about the initiative to their neighbors...
lab technician taking a tube of blood
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Media Availability
WHAT : In response to growing concerns over the mosquito-borne Zika virus, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health, has expanded a study in Brazil to see if Zika virus poses a threat to the blood supply. This blood safety study -- which originally focused on another emerging mosquito-borne...