Hemophilia Treatment Risks

There are risks involved in treatment for hemophilia (which usually involves replacing missing clotting factors). In the case of hemophilia treatment, risks may include such things as developing antibodies (which destroy the clotting factor before it has a chance to work) and getting a disease (such as hepatitis) from human blood factor. While antibodies may develop in 1 in 5 people with severe hemophilia A, improved blood donor screening and testing has significantly reduced the risk of developing a disease from receiving human blood factor. When considering these hemophilia treatment risks, it's important to remember that there are also serious risks associated with delaying treatment.

 

Hemophilia Treatment Risks: An Introduction

The main
 hemophilia treatment is replacement therapy. Replacement therapy replaces the clotting factor that is too low or missing. Concentrates of the clotting factor are infused or injected directly into the bloodstream. The specific factors used for hemophilia treatments are:
 
 
Replacement therapy can be used to prevent bleeding (preventive therapy) or to stop bleeding when it occurs (demand therapy).
 
Hemophilia treatment depends on several factors, including whether you have mild, moderate, or severe hemophilia.
 
(Click Hemophilia Treatment to learn more about treatments for hemophilia.)
 
Hemophilia treatment risks may include:
 
  • Developing antibodies, which are proteins that knock out the activity of clotting factors.
  • Disease transmission, including HIV and hepatitis.
 
In addition, there are risks associated with delaying treatment for hemophilia. Damage to joints, muscles, or other parts of the body can result from delays in hemophilia treatment.
 
(Hemophilia Treatment Risks Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD