Investigators are planning to enroll fifty patients with sickle cell disease and randomize them to be treated twice a week with sodium nitrite cream or a placebo for ten weeks. The following events will be compared in treatment and placebo arms: a) changes in blood pressure; b) changes in pulse oximetry; c) changes in methemoglobin levels; d) any adverse events; e) rate of SCD related complications; f) changes in biomarkers of inflammation and other laboratory data such as complete blood count and chemistries.