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Hydroxyurea Use Associated with Nonverbal and Executive Skills in Sickle Cell Anemia
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Hydroxyurea Use Associated with Nonverbal and Executive Skills in Sickle Cell Anemia

Reem A. Tarazi, Kristina E. Patrick, Mary Iampietro and Nataly Apollonsky
Journal of pediatric psychology, v 46(6), pp 710-718
01 Jul 2021
PMID: 33706380

Abstract

Psychology Psychology, Developmental Social Sciences
Objective Hydroxyurea (HU) is used in children with sickle cell disease (SCD) to increase fetal hemoglobin (HF), contributing to a decrease in physical symptoms and potential protection against cerebral microvasculopathy. There has been minimal investigation into the association between HU use and cognition in this population. This study examined the relationship between HU status and cognition in children with SCD. Methods Thirty-seven children with SCD HbSS or HbS/beta(0) thalassaemia (sickle cell anemia; SCA) ages 4:0-11 years with no history of overt stroke or chronic transfusion completed a neuropsychological test battery. Other medical, laboratory, and demographic data were obtained. Neuropsychological function across 3 domains (verbal, nonverbal, and attention/executive) was compared for children on HU (n = 9) to those not taking HU (n = 28). Results Children on HU performed significantly better than children not taking HU on standardized measures of attention/executive functioning and nonverbal skills. Performance on verbal measures was similar between groups. Conclusions These results suggest that treatment with HU may not only reduce physical symptoms, but may also provide potential benefit to cognition in children with SCA, particularly in regard to attention/executive functioning and nonverbal skills. Replication with larger samples and longitudinal studies are warranted.

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Psychology, Developmental
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