Hemophilia is a rare blood disorder. Our body is capable of making a pool of cells to clot the blood after a cut or an injury. Blood-clotting proteins and factors play a supporting role in this process. However, in a hemophilia child, such factors and blood-clotting proteins are absent. In other words, it means that an affected person will bleed abnormally and excessively even after a minor cut or an injury. In addition, it is a genetic condition that can be life-threatening. Furthermore, the disease can affect individuals of all ethnic and racial groups.
Types And Causes Of Hemophilia
There are two types of hemophilia.
- Classic hemophilia is caused by a lack of clotting factor VIII. It is also known as Hemophilia A.
- Christmas hemophilia is caused by a lack of clotting factor IX. It is also known as Hemophilia B.
Hemophilia A occurs four times more than Christmas hemophilia. A condition in which an individual’s immune system attacks the clotting factors in the blood is known as acquired hemophilia. It can occur due to cancer, multiple sclerosis, pregnancy, and auto-immune disorders.
Every individual has two chromosomes. A girl child inherits one X from her father and one X from her mother. Whereas, a boy child inherits one Y from his father and one X from his mother. The faulty gene responsible for hemophilia is located on the X chromosome. So, mothers pass this gene to the sons and hence hemophilia majorly occurs in males. However, 1 of every 5000 boy babies is hemophilic. For a girl child to be hemophilic, the father must be hemophilia and the mother must be a carrier of hemophilia genes. This condition is rarest of all.
Symptoms Of Hemophilia
The signs and symptoms of hemophilia include
- Excessive bleeding from minor cuts and bruises
- Unexplained bleeding after surgery or dental procedure
- Occurrence of large and deep cuts, bruises, and injuries
- Urine and stool with blood clots
- Frequent nosebleeds (with unknown cause)
- Irritability in infants
- Abnormal bleeding after taking vaccination shots
- Pain, inflammation, and swelling in joints
- A small head bump can cause bleeding into the brain
- Painful headaches
- Lethargy, double vision, and weakness
- Convulsions or seizures (in severe cases)
Complications Associated With Hemophilia
- Hemophilia causes deep and serious internal bleeding in muscles and limbs. It causes pain, inflammation, swelling, and numbness of the affected area and nerves.
- The buildup pressure on the skull causes intracranial hemorrhage. This Considine arises due to hemophilia. Furthermore, it can cause brain damage, disorientation, and death.
- The condition is responsible for damage to the joints due to internal bleeding. In addition, it causes arthritis of joints.
- The clotting factor treatment is not helpful to many hemophilia patients. It is because affected individuals develop proteins that inactivate the clotting factors there affecting the immune system adversely.
Diagnosis Of Hemophilia
It is advisable for the family members having hemophilia history to get their newborn boys tested right after birth. The healthcare professionals run blood and clotting tests to determine the clotting time of the baby. In addition, they can also carry out factor assays to check the presence of clotting factors and proteins.
Treatment Options For Hemophilia
The treatment options for hemophilia involve the replacement of faulty clotting factors and proteins with functional clotting factors. It can occur by replacing clotting factors made from donated blood and transporter to the patient through the vein. In some cases, doctors inject Desmopressin. It is a hormone that can help to release clotting factors in mild hemophilia patients. Such medications promote clotting of blood.
Conclusion
To sum up, hemophilia is a genetic condition that can be life-threatening. It occurs when a person lacks certain clotting factors and blood-clotting proteins required for clotting. It means that an affected person will bleed abnormally and excessively even after a minor cut or an injury. Whereas, Christmas hemophilia or hemophilia B occurs due to lack of clotting factor IX. Therefore, the signs and symptoms of hemophilia include Excessive bleeding from minor cuts and bruises unexplained bleeding after surgery or dental procedure, the occurrence of large and deep cuts, bruises, and injuries, urine and stool with blood clots, nosebleeds, irritability in infants, abnormal bleeding after taking vaccination shots, pain, inflammation, swelling in joints, painful headaches, lethargy, double vision, and weakness. So, the treatment options for hemophilia involve the replacement of faulty clotting factors and proteins with functional clotting factors. Reach out to healthcare providers for suitable treatment options.
