Hemophilia A – What is it, Causes and Treatments!

Hemophilia A – What it is, Causes and Treatments  that we should be informed about. Furthermore,  hemophilia  A is an inherited blood disorder where a person lacks or has low levels of certain proteins called “clotting factors” and the blood does not clot properly as a result.

This leads to excessive bleeding. There are 13 types of clotting factors, which work with platelets to help the blood clot. Platelets are small blood cells that form in your bone marrow. According to the World Federation of Hemophilia (FMH), about one in 10,000 people are born with this disease.

People with hemophilia  A  bleed easily, and blood takes longer to clot. People with hemophilia  A  may experience spontaneous or internal bleeding and often have painful, swollen joints due to bleeding into the joints. This rare but serious condition can have life-threatening complications.

Hemophilia  A  is an inherited genetic condition . This condition is not curable, but it can be treated to minimize symptoms and prevent future health complications. In extremely rare cases, hemophilia  A  can develop after birth. This is called “acquired hemophilia”. This is the case in people whose immune systems form antibodies that attack factors VIII or IX.

Main Symptoms:  The extent of your symptoms depends on the severity of your factor deficiency. People with mild disabilities may bleed in the event of trauma. People with a severe disability can bleed for no reason. This is called “spontaneous bleeding”. In children with hemophilia  A , these symptoms may occur around age 2 years.

Spontaneous bleeding can cause the following:

• blood in urine
• blood in the stool
• deep bruises
• Large unexplained bruises
• excessive bleeding
• Bleeding gums
• frequent nosebleeds
• joint pain
• tight joints
• Irritability (in children)

When to See the Doctor:  The following symptoms constitute a medical emergency. You should get treatment right away for any of these symptoms:

• A severe headache
• vomiting repeatedly
• neck pain
• Blurred or duplicated vision
• extreme drowsiness
• Continuous bleeding from an injury
• If you are pregnant, it is important that you see a doctor if you experience any of the above symptoms.

Main Causes:  A process in your body that is known as the “clotting cascade” normally stops bleeding. Blood platelets clot, or gather at the wound site, to form a clot. Then, the body’s clotting factors work together to create a more permanent plug in the wound. A low level of these clotting factors or the absence of them causes bleeding to continue.

Risk Factors:  Hemophilia A is more common in men than in women because of genetic transmission. Hemophilia C is an autosomal inherited form of the disease, which means it affects men and women equally. This is because the genetic defect that causes this type of hemophilia A is not related to the sex chromosomes. According to the Indiana Hemophilia and Thrombosis Center, this form of the disease most commonly affects people of Ashkenazi Jewish descent, but it can affect other ethnic groups as well. In the United States, hemophilia C affects about 1 in 100,000 people.

Diagnosis:  Hemophilia is diagnosed through a blood test. Your doctor will remove a small sample of blood from your vein and measure the amount of clotting factor present. The sample is then sorted to determine the severity of the factor deficiency:

• Mild hemophilia is indicated by a clotting factor in the plasma that is between 5 and 40 percent.
• Moderate hemophilia is indicated by a clotting factor in the plasma that is between 1 and 5 percent.
• Severe hemophilia is indicated by a plasma clotting factor of less than 1 percent.

How It’s Treated:  Your doctor may treat hemophilia A with a prescription hormone. This hormone is called desmopressin, which they can give you as an injection into your vein. This medication works by stimulating the factors responsible for the blood clotting process. You can also go to physical therapy for rehabilitation if your joints are damaged by hemophilia A.

How to Prevent:  Hemophilia A isa condition passed from a mother to her child. When you’re pregnant, there’s no way to know if your baby has the condition. However, if your eggs are fertilized at a clinic using IVF, they can be tested for the condition. So, only eggs without hemophilia A can be implanted. Preconception and prenatal counseling can also help you understand the risk of having a baby with hemophilia.