DETECTION OF CEREBROVASCULAR-DISEASE IN PATIENTS WITH SICKLE-CELL DISEASE USING TRANSCRANIAL DOPPLER SONOGRAPHY - CORRELATION WITH MRI, MRAAND CONVENTIONAL ANGIOGRAPHY

A prospective study of 58 patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) by t ranscranial Doppler sonography (TCD) included both MRI and MRA in pati ents over 7 years of age and those with abnormal TCD. Arteriography wa s performed in cases where a stenosis was suspected on TCD. Middle cer ebral artery (MCA) and basilar artery (BA) velocities were significant ly higher in the sickle cell hemoglobin SS group than in the hemoglobi n SC group. Patients with a MCA mean velocity of over 1.90 m/s had ste noses found by arteriography. Patients with unilaterally undetectable MCA flow had experienced a stroke and MCA thrombosis was confirmed at MRA and arteriography. We concluded that TCD is valuable in detecting arterial stenosis in SCD and will lead to consideration of these patie nts for intensive therapy, such as bone marrow transplantation (BMT) o r transfusion regimes.