Hemophilia is a blood disorder in which patients do not make enough of the clotting factors that control bleeding. Following accident or injury, people with hemophilia may be unable to stop bleeding. In severe cases, patients may bleed spontaneously at joints. While there is no cure for hemophilia, there…
Replacement therapy is one of the standard therapies used to treat hemophilia, a genetic disorder caused by the absence or defects in blood clotting factors. Hemophilia makes patients highly susceptible to bleeding due to a compromised cascade of clotting reactions that are necessary to “seal” injuries.
Von Willebrand disease (VWD) is an inherited bleeding disorder with an estimated prevalence between 23 and 110 per 1 million people. These numbers vary because the criteria for diagnosis are not always the same. Causes of VWD VWD is caused by mutations in the VWF gene. This gene…
As I write this, Mother’s Day is approaching, and tributes to mothers have begun filling the pages of local blogs and publications. They speak of the heroism of moms around the world. The sacrifices that moms make for their children. Everything they do to make their families’ lives a tiny…
I once spent an entire summer reading Emily Dickinson’s work and analyzing it, from the literal meaning of her words to the historical context of her work and the constraints under which she wrote each line. At the end of that summer, I was positive about one thing when…
A name is not mere letters on paper or a screen, but a way to proclaim our existence. What we call ourselves lets the world know who we are. My name, Joe Keith, comes from my great-uncle (my grandfather’s brother). I take a great deal of pride in carrying on…
Antifibrinolytics are medicines that promote blood clotting by preventing or slowing down a process called fibrinolysis, which is the break down of blood clots. Antifibrinolytics are used as a treatment for hemophilia, in surgical procedures to prevent excessive blood loss, and for heavy menstrual bleeding. How antifibrinolytics work…
Hemophilia is a blood disorder that is characterized by a shortage of specific clotting factors that help to form blood clots and stop bleeding. The primary treatment for hemophilia is replacement therapy that supplies the clotting factors to hemophilia patients who lack them. Other approved hemophilia treatments include…
Hemophilia is a bleeding disorder caused by a mutation in genes that provide instructions for blood clotting factors — the proteins that help in blood clotting. Mutations in the genes for clotting factors VIII, IX, and XI result in their deficiency, causing hemophilia A, hemophilia B, and hemophilia C, respectively.
Gene therapy is an experimental treatment technique that uses genes or genetic material to treat or prevent disease. Human clinical trials are underway to test potential gene therapies for hemophilia. What is hemophilia? Hemophilia is a genetic blood clotting disorder where patients do not make enough of the factors that…
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