New Sickle Cell Pulmonary Program at Brookdale

The Department of Pediatrics at Brookdale University Hospital & Medical Center announces the opening of the Sickle Cell Pulmonary Program under the direction of Dr. Mayank Shukla, Director of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine and Drs. Kusum Viswanathan and Donna Boruchov of The Division of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology. This unique program has been established to evaluate prospectively and treat lung disease in patients with sickle cell disease.

Ninety percent of adults with sickle cell disease have abnormal lung function. Thankfully, the number of children with sickle cell disease surviving into adulthood is increasing, but with that, so too are the number of adults that are at risk of developing pulmonary complications. There is poor recognition of this complication especially in pediatrics hence the establishment of this program that has an overall goal of improving the long-term survival rate and quality of life of children with sickle cell disease.

The Sickle Cell Pulmonary Program has four main objectives.

• Enroll all children with sickle cell disease over the age of eight.
• Evaluate their lung functions annually.
• Treat the lung disease early with the best available therapy to reduce their morbidity and mortality.
• Educate the physicians and families of children with the sickle cell disease about their lung problems.

For further information and enrollment please call Dr. Mayank Shukla at (718) 240-6852 or email him   at mshsukla@brookdale.edu