Translating exercise benefits in sickle cell disease

Abstract

The pathophysiologic basis for reduced fitness in sickle cell disease (SCD) is multifactorial and characterized by impaired oxygen-carrying capacity, derangements in the cardiopulmonary response to exercise, and abnormal metabolic responses in working muscles. In this issue of Blood, Merlet et al1 demonstrated in a provocative and elegant study that exercise training led to muscle capillary growth in people with SCD.