The term haemophilia is derived from the Greek words “haima” (blood) and “philia” (affection).Haemophilia is a bleeding disorder. People with haemophilia do not bleed quicker than usual, but they may bleed for longer periods of time.Their blood does not have adequate clotting factors.Clotting factor is a protein in the blood that regulates bleeding.The illness affects around one in every 10,000 persons.
They are usually passed down from one’s parents via an X chromosome that has a gene that isn’t working. Although it is more frequently encountered in men, haemophilia can also, however infrequently, affect women.In contrast to men, who only need to inherit one X chromosome impacted, women would require the inheritance of two impacted X chromosomes to be impacted.
World Haemophilia Day 2025
The theme for World Haemophilia Day 2025 is “Access for All: Women and Girls Bleed Too”.This theme emphasises the need for better diagnosis and treatment for girls and women with bleeding disorders, who are frequently under diagnosed and underserved. The primary goal is to ensure equitable access to care for this population.
About Haemophilia
Dr. John Conrad Otto is credited with providing the first contemporary description of haemophilia in 1803, describing a hereditary bleeding illness that primarily affects men. Johann Lukas Schönlein and his student Friedrich Hopff,coined the word “haemophilia” in 1828.
Types of Haemophilia
Three primary categories of haemophilia are distinguished by the clotting factor that is: Haemophilias A, B, and C.
Haemophilia A: A lack of clotting factor VIII results in haemophilia A, commonly referred to as classic haemophilia.
Haemophilia B: A deficiency of clotting factor IX causes haemophilia B, also known as Christmas disease.
Haemophilia C: Haemophilia C is characterised by clotting factor XI deficiency.
History of World Haemophilia Day
World Haemophilia Day is an annual global healthcare event observed on April 17th by the World Federation of Haemophilia (WHF) with the goal of calling on government officials and local policymakers to provide better treatment and care, as well as promote better control and prevention of haemophilia. The World Federation of Haemophilia (WFH) first celebrated World Haemophilia Day on April 17, 1989, to commemorate the birthday of Frank Schnabel, the WFH’s founder.Haemophilia was not discovered until the 10th century, when people became concerned about the disproportionate number of male deaths from seemingly minor accidents.This condition was known as abulcasis at the time.However, this could not be treated due to technological limitations.An anticoagulant was commonly used to treat a disease that was prevalent among royal families at the time, but it thins the blood and worsens the condition.
