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Hemophilia disease refers to a group of diseases. Each of these diseases affects the body's ability to clot or coagulate blood. Basically, if a hemophiliac is cut or sufferers from internal bleeding, the body is unable to clot and stop the bleeding.
To learn more about hemophilia, including its causes and treatments, keep reading.
Root Causes of Hemophilia
Hemophilia is genetic, meaning it is passed down by your parents. There are three types of hemophilia, each designed by the type of clotting factor that is missing from the blood of the person living with the disease. Simply put, the gene responsible for creating and managing that clotting factor is damaged.
Typically, hemophilia affects males. Women are usually just carriers. If a father has hemophilia, he will not pass it to his son, but he will almost always pass it to a daughter. If a mother is a hemophilia gene carrier, there is a 50 percent chance that she will pass the gene on to her child. It's important to note that hemophilia is relatively rare.
Treating Hemophilia Disease
There is no cure for hemophilia. However, the disease can be controlled through regular injections or infusions of the missing clotting factor. In some cases though, hemophiliacs develop resistance or antibodies against the replacement factors, so the dosage has to be dramatically increased or non-human factors introduced instead.
A new drug was recently approved by the FDA as an anti-hemophiliac response. It's genetically engineered from hamster ovarian cells and is essentially a recombinant factor product.
Usually, if a patient is undergoing prophylactic treatment, it's an ongoing process that continues on a weekly or monthly basis through the course of his life. However, some patients opt for on-demand service, meaning they only receive clotting agents when bleeding occurs. This is the more affordable treatment method most often chosen by those living in the US without health insurance.
In areas or countries where health care is covered by the state, patients can typically attend care centers designated for hemophiliac care. They are then appointed a hematologist, nurse, physiotherapist and social worker to help them with their treatments and continuity of care.
Alternative Care for Hemophiliacs
Some studies suggest that hypnosis and self-hypnosis can effectively control hemophilia and reduce the number of bleeds along with the severity of bleeding. This method of treatment has not been proved clinically.
Other methods include ingesting certain herbs, like scotch broom or grape seed extract, which are believed to strengthen the blood vessels. Again, there is no clinical evidence that suggest these particular herbs are an effective or even preventive remedy for hemophilia disease. Speak first with your doctor before trying such an option.
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Source by Trevor R. Price
