Does Sickle Cell Disease Protect Against Diabetes Mellitus?

Objectives: the co-existence of diabetes mellitus (dm) and sickle cell disease (scd) is rare. this study aimed to explore whether scd patients have the same dm prevalence as the general population in a country with a high prevalence of dm. methods: this cross-sectional study included all scd adult patients admitted to salmaniya medical complex, bahrain, between 2003 and 2010 (n = 2,204). a random sample (n = 520) was taken to establish the prevalence of dm. laboratory records were examined to determine the presence of dm. results: there were 376 scd patients with complete records; of these, 24 (6.4%) had dm. the age- and sex-standardised prevalence of dm was 8.3%. conclusion: while the prevalence of dm in scd patients in bahrain was high, it was lower than expected in this population. scd may have a protective effect towards dm development. however, the impact of these two conditions on vascular diseases suggest a need for screening and aggressive treatment in this population.