Sickle-cell trait and splenic infarction associated with high-altitude flying.

Abstract

THE danger of high-altitude flying to patients with sicklemia, until lately, has been more theoretical than.real. As recently as 1951 Margolies1 said that "the sickle cell trait is not a contraindication to high altitude flying." This statement was based principally on studies by Henderson and Thornell2 and Findlay, Boulter and MacGibbon,3 as well as on the fact that few published reports linked sickle-cell crisis with airplane flights.Sullivan4 (1950) described a young sicklemic patient who apparently had episodes of splenic infarction after each of two airplane flights over the Rocky Mountains; this was regarded as a chance occurrence. Recently, however, . . .