Table 1. Demographic, clinical and hematological details of all controls and patients participating in the study.
| CONTROLS | SCA | p | |
| Male/female | 18/37 | 46/44 | |
| Age (years) | 34.1 (31; 24, 58) | 34.3 (32; 18; 53) | |
| Hydroxyurea therapy (n) | - | 56 | |
| Red blood cell count (106/µL) | 4.70 (4.64; 3.79; 5.60) | 2.61 (2.61; 1.63; 4.78) | p<0.001 |
| Hematocrit (%) | 39.9 (39.5; 32.1; 48.4) | 24.8 (22.6; 17.; 37.4) | p<0.001 |
| Hemoglobin (g/dL) | 13.5 (13.3; 10.9; 15.6) | 8.5 (8.0; 6.0; 12.9) | p<0.001 |
| Mean corpuscular volume (fL) | 84.6 (84.3; 74.9; 95.7) | 96.1 (93.8; 69.2; 126.6) | p<0.001 |
| Mean corpuscular hemoglobin (pg) | 28.8 (29.0; 25.2; 30.8) | 33.4 (33.1; 20.9; 47.0) | p<0.01 |
| WBC (103/µL) | 6.1 (5.90; 3.6; 8.9) | 9.6 (9.5; 4.0; 22.3) | p<0.001 |
| HbF (%) | 0.4 (0.3; 0.1; 1.7) | 10.6 (8.7; 0.8; 27.2) | p<0.001 |
| PLTs (103/µL) | 293 (276; 208; 428) | 375 (355; 156; 711) | p<0.01 |
SCA, steady-state SCA patients; hydroxyurea therapy (20–30 mg/kg/day for at least 3 months); HbF, fetal hemoglobin. Data present (except M/F value) are mean (median, min, max).