Repeat transcranial Doppler ultrasound imaging in Kuwaiti children with
sickle cell disease after a 10-year interval
Abstract
Objectives: Transcranial Doppler imaging (TCDI) of the cerebral
arteries is the method of choice to predict patients with sickle cell
disease (SCD) at risk for stroke. The present study reports TCDI
follow-up of cerebral blood flow in Kuwaiti children with SCD after a
10-year interval. Methods: Twenty-one pediatric patients with
SCD, aged 16.0 ± 1.6 years were initially studied when they were aged
6.5 ± 1.2 years. TCDI scanning was carried out using a phased-array
transducer of 1-3 MHz through the trans-temporal window. Peak systolic
velocity (PSV), end diastolic velocity (EDV), time-averaged mean of the
maximum velocity (TAMMV), resistive index (RI), and pulsatility index
(PI) were obtained in the anterior and posterior Circle of Willis
vessels. Results: The follow-up indices were mostly lower than
in the initial study although they remained within the normal range in
all the arteries. TAMMV was less than 170 cm/s, and PSV did not exceed
200 cm/s in all vessels. The initial and follow-up TAMMV were: 77.3 ±
20.9 and 71.6 ± 9.9 in the terminal internal carotid artery, 94.3 ± 25.8
and 82 ± 18.2 in the middle cerebral artery, 76.6 ± 25.6 and 70.6 ± 10.7
in the anterior cerebral artery, and 59.1 ± 15.8 and 63.9 ± 8.5 in the
posterior cerebral artery respectively. The differences between the old
and follow-up data for PSV, RI, and PI were statistically significant
(P<0.05). Conclusions: Kuwaiti patients with SCD
appear to be largely protected from cerebral artery vasculopathy in
childhood.