What is sickle beta + thalassemia?

Also known as: hemoglobin sickle beta thalassemia, Hb beta-thalassemia.

Sickle beta + thalassemia is a disease that cause a mild form of sickle cell anemia. This causes the body’s hemoglobin, or red blood cells, to take on a sickle shape and not flow through the blood vessels as smoothly. This can cause a number of complications. The “plus” indicates that the blood has a lower than normal amount of normal hemoglobin. This differs from sickle beta 0 thalassemia, in which a person has no normal hemoglobin.

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Reviewed by: Athena Pefkarou, MD

This page was last updated on: 1/29/2019 3:21:13 PM