There are two types of Hemophilia, A and B. Both are
caused by deficiencies in the amount of clotting factor in the blood (VIII or IX). When the blood does not have enough of one of these or is missing one clotting factor, the bleeding may end very slowly or may not stop at all. The two types of Hemophilia are linked together by their similar clinical pictures and their similar inheritance patterns. The most dangerous part about having Hemophilia is internal bleeding. If internal bleeding is left untreated it can lead to deformity, disability or even death. In a Hemophiliac the bleeding continues until either it clots long enough for it to heal or the person will bleed to death.
History of Hemophilia The
earliest references to hemophilia can be
found in second century Jewish writings. The first attempts to treat hemophilia was by replacing the clotting factory with blood plasma taken from pigs and cows. In the 1970s scientists found two approaches to the disease One that was called prophylaxis required injecting doses of the clotting factor on a regular basis The second was to inject the factor whenever the bleeding occurred
How do you get it?
Hemophilia
is a genetic disease and is passed
on by the X chromosome (the chromosome that carries the clotting factor). If a boy gets the X chromosome that carries the hemophilia gene he will become a hemophiliac. If a girl get the gene, she will become the carrier of the gene, not showing symptoms of the disease though she may have a long or heavy menstrual cycle. The carrier has a 50% chance of passing the gene on to her children every time she gets pregnant.
How do you get it ctd.
How do you know if you have it?
When
a baby starts to crawl the parents may
notice bruises on stomach, chest, buttock, and back. The baby may also be fussy, not wanting to walk or crawl Other symptoms include long nosebleeds, excessive bleeding from biting down on the lips or tongue, excessive bleeding following a tooth extraction, excessive bleeding following surgery and blood in the urine.
Testing for Hemophilia
There are two ways to test for Hemophilia before birth though both may cause a sight risk of a miscarriage One is to take a fragment of tissue from the placenta and look at the genetic structure. The DNA can be examined to see if the child has Hemophilia.
Another way is to insert a thin
needle though the mothers abdominal wall. The needle has optical fibers and a system which enables the doctor to see the womb and fetus. With the image, the doctor can insert a needle into the umbilical cord and draw out a small amount of fetal blood. After the child is born, several blood tests may be carried out to determine if the child has it.
Daily cost of Having Hemophilia
Because
Hemophilia is a life long disease
if you have it you need life long treatment. It will cost any where from $75,000 to $125,000 a year to treat severe hemophilia. That is approximately 31 times an average nonhemophiliac pays for health care over the course of a year.
Average life span of people with
Hemophilia Year
Average age at the time
of death
Treatments available at time
Before 1938
11
none
Before 1968
20
Plasma or Whole blood
transfusions
1968
Less than 40
Cryoprecipitate
1983
64
Freeze dried clotting
factors
1988
40 ( impact of aids)
Same
1999
Normal life span
Factors produced by genetic engineering
Average life span ctd.
This is a diagram of the joints most commonly
affected by Hemophilia. It most often occurs at the knees, hips, ankles, shoulders, and elbows
The most common muscles that bleed with
Hemophilia are those in the the upper arm, upper leg (front and back), the calf and the front of the groin
Daily life with Hemophilia
Children
can not play with toys with sharp
or hard edges. Sports or other out-side activities may lead to injuries. The patients will most likely want to clean their teeth properly so diseases that can lead to bleeding in the gums will not occur.
Facts About Hemophilia
About 17,000 people in the
USA have the disease. 400,000 people through out the world have it in 40 countries.
Each case of Hemophilia is
different. It Is called the royal disease because it was passed down from Queen Victoria and descended down the royal blood line.
Hemophilia may lead to
arthritis because bleeding into the joints can inflame the joint lining and destroy cartilage. The Hemophiliac will not bleed any faster than a normal person, the bleeding just will not stop as quickly. Ordinary bruises are rarely a serious problem but cuts and abrasions may bleed for days (with out treatment).
Bibliography
Willet, Edward 1959. Enslow Publishers, Inc. Diseases and
People: Hemophilia. Pgs 128. Hemophilia: Information provided by NIH & NHLBI http://www.medceu.com/tests/hemophilia.htm Hemophilia. Funded by Josiah Macy Jr. foundation http://www.ygyh.org/hemo/whatisit.htm "Hemophilia," Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2004 http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefArticle.aspx? refid=761570021 Hemophilia A and B. Last updated June 23, 2004 Written by Hadi Sawaf http://www.emedicine.com/ped/topic962.htm Yahoo image search: http://burns.ee.cua.edu/~georgvis/classes/pennyb/xlink2.gif Yahoo image search http://www.drjerryherndon.com/images/teeth.jpg