Hemophilia is a rare disorder in which your blood doesn‘t clot normally because it lacks sufficient blood-clotting proteins (clotting factors). It is a genetic disorder, passed on from mothers.

Small cuts usually aren‘t much of a problem. If you have a severe deficiency of the clotting factor protein, the greater health concern is deep bleeding inside your body, especially in your knees, ankles and elbows. That internal bleeding can damage your organs and tissues, and may be life-threatening.

The World Hemophilia Federation estimates that about 10,000 Filipinos have hemophilia, with about 1million suffering from Von Willebrand disease and other bleeding disorders.

Signs and symptoms of hemophilia vary, depending on your level of clotting factors. If your clotting-factor level is mildly reduced, you may bleed only after surgery or trauma. If your deficiency is severe, you may experience spontaneous bleeding.

Signs and symptoms of spontaneous bleeding include:

• Unexplained and excessive bleeding from cuts or injuries, or after surgery or dental work
• Many large or deep bruises
• Unusual bleeding after vaccinations
• Pain, swelling or tightness in your joints
• Blood in your urine or stool
• Nosebleeds without a known cause
• In infants, unexplained irritability

Hemophilia A is the most common type of hemophilia that occurs in about 1 in 5000 males caused by missing or defective factor VIII.

Hemophilia B is a less common type of hemophilia that occurs in about 1 in 25000 male births caused by missing or defective factor IX. Having a defective factor means that the body of person has no means to repair itself when there is damage in the blood vessel or injured tissue that will lead to excessive bleeding and internal hemorrhaging.

A more serious concern for people suffering from hemophilia is spontaneous bleeding; any leak can cause severe bleeding and the body will not heal itself. Bleeding into different organs can be life threatening because when it occurs to a vital organ, it can cause permanent damage beyond repair.

Hemophilia B Leyden is an extremely rare form of Hemophilia B that causes young children to bleed excessively throughout childhood but when they reach puberty, very little bleeding occurs afterward.

Hemophilia is a recessive x-linked trait which affects approximately 1 in 4500 males, but there are cases in which the mutation can cause the same disease issue to the carrier [mothers].

Medical scientists haven’t found a cure yet for this condition. The only treatment available for hemophilia is replacement therapy wherein, concentrates of clotting factor VIII (for hemophilia A) and IX (for hemophilia B) are slowly dripped or injected into a vein. This helps in replacing the defective clotting factor of the blood. Out of the 10000 Filipinos that suffer from hemophilia, 3 out of every 4 people lack the resources required for proper treatments.

Source: Mayo Clinic | Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (DOST-PHRD)