Haemophilia

Treating

The recommended treatment plan for haemophilia depends on how severe the condition is.

There are two main approaches to treatment:

preventative treatment where medication is used to prevent episodes of bleeding and subsequent joint and muscle damage
on-demand treatment where medication is used in response to an episode of prolonged bleeding

Haemophilia is usually treated by a team at a specialist haemophilia hospital department.

Preventative treatment

Most cases of haemophilia are severe and require preventative treatment (prophylaxis). This involves regular injections of clotting factor medication.

When your child is young, you'll be trained to give them the injections. They'll be taught how to inject themselves when they're older to help avoid regular hospital appointments.

In some cases, injections may be given into a device called an implantable port, which can be surgically placed under the skin. This port is connected to a blood vessel near the heart, meaning you don't need to try to find a vein for every injection.

If you're having preventative treatment, you'll need regular follow-up appointments with your care team so your progress can be monitored.

Preventative treatment is usually continued until you're fully grown. After this point, it may be possible to change to on-demand treatment, but you may be advised to switch back to preventative treatment if you experience any episodes of significant bleeding.

Haemophilia A

Preventative treatment for haemophilia A involves regular injections of a medication called octocog alfa. This is an engineered version of clotting factor VIII (8), the clotting factor that people with haemophilia A don't have enough of. Injections every 48 hours are often recommended.

Side effects of octocog alfa are uncommon, but can include an itchy skin rash and redness and soreness at the site of the injection.

Haemophilia B

Preventative treatment for people with haemophilia B involves regular injections of a medication called nonacog alfa. This is an engineered version of clotting factor IX (9), which people with haemophilia B don't have enough of. Injections twice a week are often recommended.

Side effects of nonacog alfa are uncommon, but include headaches, altered taste, nausea, and discomfort and swelling at the injection site.

On-demand treatment

In mild or moderate cases, treatment for haemophilia may only be necessary as an immediate response to bleeding.

Haemophilia A

People with haemophilia A can be treated on-demand with injections of octocog alfa or a medication called desmopressin.

Desmopressin is a synthetic hormone. Hormones are powerful chemicals that can have a wide range of effects on the body. Desmopressin works by stimulating the production of clotting factor VIII (8) and is usually given by injection.

Possible side effects of desmopressin include headache, stomach pain and nausea.

Haemophilia B

On-demand treatment for haemophilia usually involves injections of a medication called nonacog alfa.

Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 4 Jan 2017

Articles for haemophilia

Introduction

Haemophilia is an inherited condition that affects the blood's ability to clot. Normally, when you cut yourself, substances in the blood known as clotting factors combine with blood cells called platelets to make the blood sticky

Symptoms

The symptoms of haemophilia vary, depending on how severe the condition is, but the main sign is prolonged bleeding. The symptoms of an intracranial haemorrhage include: severe headache, stiff neck, vomiting, a change in mental state such as confusion, etc.

Causes

Haemophilia is caused by an inherited genetic mutation that mainly affects males, due to the way it's passed from a parent to their child. A genetic mutation is a permanent alteration in the DNA sequence that makes up a gene.

Diagnosis

Haemophilia can be diagnosed before, during or after birth if there's a family history of the condition. Several options are available to parents. If there's no family history of haemophilia, it's usually only diagnosed when a child begins to walk or crawl.

Treating

If your child is diagnosed with haemophilia, their recommended treatment plan will depend on how severe their haemophilia is. There are two main approaches to treatment: preventative treatment and on-demand treatment.

Complications

Some people who take blood clotting factor medication may develop certain antibodies in their immune system, known as inhibitors.This happens if the immune system starts to treat clotting factors as foreign objects (like germs) and tries to block their effects.

Living with

With treatment, most people with haemophilia can live a normal life. However, there are some things you'll need to be careful of. You should avoid contact sports such as rugby. You also need to be careful taking other medications, because some can interfere with your blood's ability to clot.

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