TABLE 1.
Demographic, clinical, and laboratory characteristics of study participants at enrollment.
| Characteristics | Aparasitemic | UM (Hb ≥ 5.0 g/dl) | SMA (Hb < 5.0 g/dl) | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demographic parameters | ||||
| Sample size (n) | 288 | 971 | 287 | |
| Sex, n (%) | ||||
| Female | 145 (50.35) | 480 (49.43) | 146 (50.87) | 0.898a |
| Male | 143 (49.65) | 491 (50.57) | 141 (49.13) | |
| Age, (months) | 11.16 (13.15) | 12.77 (10.43) | 9.83 (10.60)** | 4.480 × 10 −4 b |
| Hematological indices and parasitemia | ||||
| Hematocrit, (Hct. %) | 32.90 (7.40) | 25.30 (9.00) | 14.30 (3.80)** | 8.543 × 10 −141 b |
| Hemoglobin, g/dL | 10.35 (2.70) | 7.70 (2.90) | 4.30 (1.20)** | 4.202 × 10 −164 b |
| RBC, (×1012/μl) | 4.67 (1.12) | 3.79 (1.41) | 1.91 (0.69)** | 6.420 × 10 −131 b |
| MCV | 70.00 (10.40) | 69.00 (11.05) | 73.00 (13.73)** | 1.986 × 10 −11 b |
| MCH | 22.20 (3.90) | 21.30 (4.10) | 21.90 (4.30)** | 5.617 × 10 −7 b |
| MCHC | 31.70 (2.70) | 30.70 (2.60) | 30.15 (4.30)* | 1.862 × 10 −10 b |
| RDW | 18.60 (5.50) | 20.30 (4.60) | 22.75 (5.80)** | 4.642 × 10 −27 b |
| WBC, (×103/μl) | 11.00 (7.20) | 11.70 (6.60) | 14.30 (9.40)** | 1.085 × 10 −7 b |
| Monocytes, (×103/μl) | 7.70 (4.30) | 7.90 (5.30) | 9.15 (7.00)** | 4.823 × 10 −8 b |
| Granulocytes, (×103/μl) | 36.00 (20.00) | 45.20 (25.10) | 39.30 (21.10)** | 3.364 × 10 −16 b |
| Lymphocytes, (×103/μl) | 55.80 (18.40) | 46.15 (21.20) | 49.90 (17.00)* | 2.239 × 10 −18 b |
| Platelet Counts, (×103/μl) | 341.00 (224.00) | 152.00 (123.80) | 141.50 (92.50) | 1.048 × 10 −66 b |
| Parasite density/μl | 0.00 (0.00) | 28,844.70 (79,216) | 24,200.00 (69,659)* | 0.032 c |
| Genetic variants | ||||
| Sickle Cell trait, n (%) | ||||
| HbAA | 221 (78.65) | 799 (83.14) | 254 (91.04)* | |
| HbAS | 51 (18.15) | 158 (16.44) | 19 (6.81)* | 7.113 × 10 −7 a |
| HbSS | 9 (3.20) | 4 (0.42) | 6 (2.15)* | |
| G6PD | ||||
| Normal | 180 (62.50) | 628 (64.68) | 200 (69.69) | |
| Intermediate | 47 (16.32) | 173 (17.82) | 36 (12.54) | 0.294 a |
| Deficient | 11 (3.82) | 36 (3.71) | 13 (4.53) | |
| α3.7-Thal deletion, n (%) | ||||
| αα/αα | 97 (33.68) | 338 (34.81) | 94 (32.75) | |
| α3.7/αα | 69 (23.96) | 310 (31.93) | 97 (21.53) | 0.025a |
| α3.7/αα | 62 (21.53) | 148 (15.24) | 47 (16.38) | |
| Co-infections | ||||
| Bacteremia, n (%) | 25 (8.68) | 58 (5.97) | 26 (9.06) | 0.067 a |
| HIV-1, n (%) | 12 (4.17) | 28 (2.88) | 24 (8.36)* | 2.250x10 −4 a |
Study participants (n = 1,546) were stratified into three groups, aparasitemic, SMA (i.e., Hb < 5.0 g/dl with any density parasitemia) or UM (Hb ≥ 5.0 g/dl with any density parasitemia). Data presented are medians (interquartile range, IQR), unless otherwise stated.
Statistical significance determined by Fisher’s exact test.
Differences were determined using Kruskal–Wallis tests, and where significant differences were observed, pairwise comparisons between UM and SMA group were performed using Mann-Whitney U tests. Bold values indicates a p value of ≤0.050.
*Represents significant pairwise comparisons between UM and SMA p-value < 0.050, and ** represents p-value < 0.001.
Differences between UM and SMA group were performed using Mann-Whitney U tests and Fisher’s exact test (one-sided for Bacteremia and HIV-1, two-sided unless stated otherwise). NB: The percentages for sex and sickle cell trait are worked down the column, while those of bacteremia and HIV-1 are calculated across the rows.
*RBCs = red blood cells; MCV = mean corpuscular volume; MCH = mean corpuscular hemoglobin; MCHCH = mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration; RDW = red blood cell distribution width and WBCs = white blood cells; Hb AA = hemoglobin AA; Hb AS = Hemoglobin AS; Hb SS = Hemoglobin SS; α-Thal = α-thalassemia 3.7 kb deletion; G6PD = glucose 6 phosphate dehydrogenase.
Bold indicate significant p values.