When caring for a child with sickle cell disease, the practical nurse (PN) expects that the child will most likely describe which symptom when experiencing a sickle cell crisis?

A. Fatigue: Common in anemia but not the most characteristic crisis symptom. B. Infection: A complication of sickle cell disease but not the hallmark of a vaso-occlusive crisis. C. Joint pain: Vaso-occlusion causes severe pain, often in joints, bones, or abdomen, during a sickle cell crisis. D. Decreased hemoglobin: Present but not the primary symptom described by the client in crisis.