Table 1: Main characteristics of the entire cohort of sickle cell disease patients.
| Characteristics | Total n = 267# | HCV-negative n = 211 | HCV-positive n = 17 | P |
| Age, years | 33 [25-42] | 32 [24-40] | 44 [38-51.5] | 0.001** |
| Women, n (%) | 164/262 (62.5) | 135/206 (65.5) | 7/17 (41) | 0.04* |
| Origin, n (%) Sub-Saharan Africa North Africa West Indies Caucasian North America or Brazil |
177/255 (69.5) 5/255 (2) 54/255 (21) 17/255 (6.5) 4/255 (1.5) |
147/200 (73.5) 5/200 (2.5) 36/200 (18) 10/200 (5) 4/200 (2) |
10/16 (62.5) 0/16 (0) 6/16 (37.5) 0/16 (0) 0/6 (0) |
0.40 1.00 0.10 1.00 1.00 |
| Sickle cell disease genotype, n (%) SS SC S/β-thalassemia |
178/253 (70) 60/253 (24) 15/253 (6) |
136/197 (69) 51/197 (26) 10/197 (5) |
17/17 (100) 0/17 (0) 0/17 (0) |
0.004** 0.01* 1.00 |
| Haemoglobin, g/dL | 9.2 [8-10.4] | 9.3 [8.1-10.4] | 8.7 [7.1-9.5] | 0.05 |
| Reticulocytes,109/L | 200 [141.5-311.5] |
198.5 [137-304.5] |
240.5 [178-364] |
0.08 |
| History of red blood cell transfusion, n (%) | 172/236 (73) | 131/184 (71) | 16/17 (94) | 0.05 |
| Alcohol abuse, n (%) | 12/225 (5) | 9/175 (5) | 2/16 (12.5) | 0.20 |
| Intravenous drug abuse, n (%) | 2/214 (1) | 2/166 (1) | 0/16 (0) | 1.00 |
| Cardiovascular risk factors: | ||||
| Hypertension, n (%) | 20/236 (8.5) | 13/185 (7) | 6/16 (37.5) | 0.001** |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) Diabetes mellitus, n (%) Smokers, n (%) |
21.8 [20.324.5] 5/236 (2) 34/229 (15) |
21.9 [20-24.9] 4/185 (2) 27/181 (15) |
22.2 [20.4-25.4] 1/16 (6) 1/16 (6) |
0.85 0.30 0.45 |
| Cardiovascular disease events | ||||
| Stroke, n (%) | 22/241 (9) | 19/190 (10) | 2/17 (12) | 0.70 |
| Myocardial infarction, n (%) | 1/239 (0.4) | 1/188 (0.5) | 0/17 (0) | 1.00 |
| Heart failure, n (%) | 8/241 (3) | 6/190 (3) | 1/17 (6) | 0.45 |
| Hemochromatosis, n (%) | 52/247 (21) | 39/195 (20) | 8/17 (47) | 0.03* |
| Liver failure, n (%) | 2/243 (0.8) | 1/190 (0.5) | 1/17 (6) | 0.16 |
| HBV infection markers, n (%) | ||||
| HBc Ab* +, HBs Ag - HBs Ag + |
63/151 (42) 2/204 (1) |
50/135 (37) 1/188 (0.5) |
10/13 (77) 1/16 (6) |
0.02* 0.15 |
| HIV infection, n (%) | 6/205 (3) | 6/189 (3) | 0/16 (0) | 1.000 |
*p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001.
Continuous variables are expressed in median [IQR]. Ab = antibody; Ag = antigen; #Patients not screened for HCV status: n = 39; *Data for HBc antibodies was not available in 53 patients who had HBV serology screening.