Pain CrisisNCT00081523
Natural History of Sickle Cell Disease
An observational study of Pain Crisis, run by National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) at 3 sites in United States.
Trial summary
This study is not a treatment protocol and no experimental treatments are involved. Study participants may be seen as needed for clinical, translational and basic research studies, or as medically indicated. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 2 to 90 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Pain Crisis
- How many people
- 3,500 participants
- Where
- 3 sitesUnited States
- Study dates
- 29 Apr 2004to not given
- Phase
- Observational
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 2 to 90 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Study population: The study will be open to all eligible subjects based on inclusion and exclusion criteria and who provide informed consent. Patients may self-refer, be recruited through the NIH office of recruitment, and may include patients participating on other NIH IRB approved protocols. The study will also be open to all eligible pediatric patients receiving medical care for SCD at Children s National.
Who may be able to join
- Individuals with known or suspected sickle cell disease
- 2 years of age and older
- Willing to provide informed consent or appropriate informed consent from parent or legal guardian
- Patients seen at sickle outpatient clinics at any one of the participating centers (CNHS or NIH).
Who cannot join
- Patient and/or guardian unable and unwilling to give informed consent or assent.
- Patients less than 2 years of age.
- Individuals with known or suspected sickle cell disease will meet the inclusion criteria to enroll in this protocol and can undergo study activities. However, if the individual is found not to have sickle cell disease after enrollment, they will be removed from the protocol, and their research samples will be discarded but they will be counted toward the study accrual. The study team will notify the individual about their removal from the study and explain the reason for it. Any necessary regulatory reporting will also be completed.
Trial locations and contacts
3 sites in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
United States3 sites, 2 recruiting
- Completed
Suburban Hospital
Bethesda, Maryland, 20814
- Recruiting
National Institutes of Health Clinical Center
Bethesda, Maryland, 20892
For more information at the NIH Clinical Center contact Office of Patient Recruitment (OPR), 800-411-1222 ext. TTY dial 711, ccopr@nih.gov
- Recruiting
Childrens National Health Center
Washington D.C., District of Columbia, 20010
Deepika Darbari, M.D., 202-476-6393, ddarbari@cnmc.org
About this study
Official title: Studies of the Natural History of Sickle Cell Disease
This study is not a treatment protocol and no experimental treatments are involved. Study participants may be seen as needed for clinical, translational and basic research studies, or as medically indicated. Subjects will receive their general medical care outside the NIH and will be seen at our clinic or at CNHS with varying frequency. Subjects may be seen for multiple visits. Subjects may be asked to return for additional testing as needed. Clinical care for patients with sickle cell disease will be provided as appropriate through the Sickle Cell Clinic and the inpatient clinical center.
Read the detailed description
This protocol will permit the establishment of a repository of biospecimens from individuals affected with sickle cell disease to identify and evaluate underlying disease mechanism(s), and to facilitate understanding of the pathogenesis and natural history of vaso-occlusive painful crisis and other complications of the disease. Patients will be evaluated with a medical history and physical examination and routine laboratory studies will be obtained as needed to assess diagnosis, disease activity, and disease complications and to monitor for treatment-related responses and toxicities. This protocol may also provide for the continued storage and analysis of clinical and research data, and biospecimens previously obtained from other NIH Institutional Review Board (IRB)-approved protocols with subject consent.
Patients eligible for other research protocols will be offered an opportunity to participate in these studies after signed informed consent has been obtained. Apart from such protocols, any medical care or additional tests/investigations recommended or provided to the patient will be consistent with routine standards of practice and will be provided in consultation with the patient s referring physician.
- Conditions
- Pain Crisis
- Keywords
- Hemoglobin, Acute Chest Syndrome, Treatment Options, Nitric Oxide, Pulmonary Hypertension, Natural History
- Medical subject headings
- Acute Chest Syndrome, Hypertension, Pulmonary
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Patients | Individuals with known or suspected sickle cell disease |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
To gather, through clinical experience, information regarding the natural history, co-morbid conditions and outcomes, and complications relating to sickle cell disease and other hemolytic disorders in minority/ethnic patients
Better characterization of the natural history of sickle cell disease
Measured: ongoing
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted15 Apr 2004 (estimated)
- Study start29 Apr 2004
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (8)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Pain CrisisStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)The sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Observational
- Observational model
- Case only
- Time perspective
- Prospective
- Enrolment
- 3,500 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Sponsor type
- US National Institutes of Health
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
- Investigators
- Swee Lay Thein, M.D., Principal investigator, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT00081523
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 040161
- Other IDs
- 04-H-0161
- Status last verified
- 19 Oct 2026
- First submitted
- 15 Apr 2004
- Last updated
- 21 Oct 2026
- Results posted
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Undecided: The team is in the process of making a determination.
Publications
Parrow NL, Doherty JM, Conrey A, Thein SL, Fleming RE. Relationships Between Markers of Iron Status and Hematological Parameters in Patients With Sickle Cell Disease. Adv Hematol. 2024 Dec 3;2024:9872440. doi: 10.1155/ah/9872440. eCollection 2024.
PubMed 39659429Tumburu L, Ghosh-Choudhary S, Seifuddin FT, Barbu EA, Yang S, Ahmad MM, Wilkins LHW, Tunc I, Sivakumar I, Nichols JS, Dagur PK, Yang S, Almeida LEF, Quezado ZMN, Combs CA, Lindberg E, Bleck CKE, Zhu J, Shet AS, Chung JH, Pirooznia M, Thein SL. Circulating mitochondrial DNA is a proinflammatory DAMP in sickle cell disease. Blood. 2021 Jun 3;137(22):3116-3126. doi: 10.1182/blood.2020009063.
PubMed 33661274Giudice V, Feng X, Lin Z, Hu W, Zhang F, Qiao W, Ibanez MDPF, Rios O, Young NS. Deep sequencing and flow cytometric characterization of expanded effector memory CD8+CD57+ T cells frequently reveals T-cell receptor Vbeta oligoclonality and CDR3 homology in acquired aplastic anemia. Haematologica. 2018 May;103(5):759-769. doi: 10.3324/haematol.2017.176701. Epub 2018 Feb 1.
PubMed 29419434Nguyen KL, Tian X, Alam S, Mehari A, Leung SW, Seamon C, Allen D, Minniti CP, Sachdev V, Arai AE, Kato GJ. Elevated transpulmonary gradient and cardiac magnetic resonance-derived right ventricular remodeling predict poor outcomes in sickle cell disease. Haematologica. 2016 Feb;101(2):e40-3. doi: 10.3324/haematol.2015.125229. Epub 2015 Nov 20. No abstract available.
PubMed 26589907Wang X, Mendelsohn L, Rogers H, Leitman S, Raghavachari N, Yang Y, Yau YY, Tallack M, Perkins A, Taylor JG 6th, Noguchi CT, Kato GJ. Heme-bound iron activates placenta growth factor in erythroid cells via erythroid Kruppel-like factor. Blood. 2014 Aug 7;124(6):946-54. doi: 10.1182/blood-2013-11-539718. Epub 2014 Jun 10.
PubMed 24916507Koh C, Turner T, Zhao X, Minniti CP, Feld JJ, Simpson J, Demino M, Conrey AK, Jackson MJ, Seamon C, Kleiner DE, Kato GJ, Heller T. Liver stiffness increases acutely during sickle cell vaso-occlusive crisis. Am J Hematol. 2013 Nov;88(11):E250-4. doi: 10.1002/ajh.23532. Epub 2013 Aug 1.
PubMed 23828202Tumblin A, Tailor A, Hoehn GT, Mack AK, Mendelsohn L, Freeman L, Xu X, Remaley AT, Munson PJ, Suffredini AF, Kato GJ. Apolipoprotein A-I and serum amyloid A plasma levels are biomarkers of acute painful episodes in patients with sickle cell disease. Haematologica. 2010 Sep;95(9):1467-72. doi: 10.3324/haematol.2009.018044. Epub 2010 Apr 7.
PubMed 20378559Olnes M, Chi A, Haney C, May R, Minniti C, Taylor J 6th, Kato GJ. Improvement in hemolysis and pulmonary arterial systolic pressure in adult patients with sickle cell disease during treatment with hydroxyurea. Am J Hematol. 2009 Aug;84(8):530-32. doi: 10.1002/ajh.21446.
PubMed 19536844