Decadelong study finds smoking worsens sickle cell retinopathy

Sickle cell retinopathy (SCR), a common, potentially blinding eye condition found among some people with sickle cell disease, is caused by misshapen blood cells blocking blood vessels in the light-sensing retina. In a 10-year retrospective study of adults with SCR treated at Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins Medicine, researchers found active smoking is a strong modifiable risk factor for disease progression, highlighting smoking cessation and routine screening as two actionable means of preventing vision loss.

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