The NCAA and American College of Sports Medicine hosted a
roundtable in March 2012 which brought together leading experts
on sickle cell trait in athletics. The discussion focused on the
growing literature surrounding the impact of sickle cell trait
while exercising in an attempt to provide guidance for the
recreational athlete and general public. The meeting included
representatives from ACSM, American Society of Hematology,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Collegiate
Athletic Association, National Athletic Trainers’ Association,
and the Korey Stringer Institute. The consensus of the meeting
follows. The group continues to work on the development of a
fact sheet with ASCM; a scientific expert journal publication
article; and the establishment of a research agenda for further
study on the impact of sickle cell trait in the active
individual. Sickle cell trait is not a disease. It is a
descriptive term for a hereditary condition in which an
individual has one normal gene for hemoglobin (A)