Acquired Hemophilia

National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.

Synonyms

  • acquired hemophilia A (AHA)
  • acquired hemophilia B (AHB)

Disorder Subdivisions

  • None

General Discussion

Summary
Acquired hemophilia is a rare autoimmune disorder characterized by bleeding that occurs in patients with a personal and family history negative for hemorrhages. Autoimmune disorders occur when the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy cells or tissue. In acquired hemophilia, the body produces antibodies (known as inhibitors) that attack clotting factors, most often factor VIII. Clotting factors are specialized proteins required for the blood to clot normally. Consequently, affected individuals develop complications associated with abnormal, uncontrolled bleeding into the muscles, skin and soft tissue and during surgery or following trauma. Specific symptoms can include nosebleeds (epistaxis), bruising throughout the body, solid swellings of congealed blood (hematomas), blood in the urine (hematuria) and gastrointestinal or urogenital bleeding. Acquired hemophilia can potentially cause severe, life-threatening bleeding complications in severe cases. In approximately 50% of cases, there is an identifiable underlying clinical condition; in the other 50% no cause is known (idiopathic).

Introduction
Acquired hemophilia is different from congenital hemophilia, a group of rare genetic disorders caused by congenital deficiency of certain clotting factors. The main form of hemophilia is hemophilia A (classic hemophilia), which is an X-linked disorder that fully affects males only. It is caused by deficiency or inactivation of factor VIII, the same clotting factor that is affected in most cases of acquired hemophilia. Although both disorders involve deficiency of the same clotting factor, the bleeding pattern is quite different. The reason the bleeding patterns differ between these disorders is not fully understood.

Resources

National Hemophilia Foundation
116 West 32nd Street, 11th Floor
New York, NY 10001
USA
Tel: (212)328-3700
Fax: (212)328-3777
Tel: (800)424-2634
Email: handi@hemophilia.org
Internet: http://www.hemophilia.org

Canadian Hemophilia Society
400-1255 University Street
Montreal
Quebec, H3B 3B6
Canada
Tel: 514-848-0503
Fax: 514-848-9661
Tel: 800-668-2686
Email: chs@hemophilia.ca
Internet: http://www.hemophilia.ca

NIH/National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute
P.O. Box 30105
Bethesda, MD 20892-0105
Tel: (301)592-8573
Fax: (301)251-1223
Email: nhlbiinfo@rover.nhlbi.nih.gov
Internet: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/

World Federation of Hemophilia
1425 René Lévesque Blvd. W. Suite 1010
Montreal
Quebec, Intl H3G 1T7
Canada
Tel: +1 (514) 875-7944
Fax: +1 (514) 875-8916
Email: wfh@wfh.org
Internet: http://www.wfh.org/index.asp?lang=EN

Children's Cancer & Blood Foundation
333 East 38th Street, Suite 830
New York, NY 10016-2745
Tel: (212)297-4336
Fax: (212)297-4340
Email: info@childrenscbf.org
Internet: http://www.childrenscbf.org/

Hemophilia Federation of America
210 7th St. SE
Suite 200B
Washington, DC 20003
USA
Tel: (202)675-6984
Fax: (202)675-6983
Tel: (800)230-9797
Email: info@hemophiliafed.org
Internet: http://www.hemophiliafed.org

Genetic and Rare Diseases (GARD) Information Center
PO Box 8126
Gaithersburg, MD 20898-8126
Tel: (301)251-4925
Fax: (301)251-4911
Tel: (888)205-2311
TDD: (888)205-3223
Internet: http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/GARD/

Irish Haemophilia Society
First Floor
Cathedral Court
New Street
Dublin, 7
Ireland
Tel: +353 (0)1 657 99 00
Fax: +353 (0)1 657 99 01
Email: info@haemophilia.ie
Internet: http://www.haemophilia.ie/

For a Complete Report

This is an abstract of a report from the National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.® (NORD). Cigna members can access the complete report by logging into myCigna.com. For non-Cigna members, a copy of the complete report can be obtained for a small fee by visiting the NORD website. The complete report contains additional information including symptoms, causes, affected population, related disorders, standard and investigational treatments (if available), and references from medical literature. For a full-text version of this topic, see http://www.rarediseases.org/search/rdblist.html.

The information provided in this report is not intended for diagnostic purposes. It is provided for informational purposes only. NORD recommends that affected individuals seek the advice or counsel of their own personal physicians.

It is possible that the title of this topic is not the name you selected. Please check the Synonyms listing to find the alternate name(s) and Disorder Subdivision(s) covered by this report

This disease entry is based upon medical information available through the date at the end of the topic. Since NORD's resources are limited, it is not possible to keep every entry in the Rare Disease Database completely current and accurate. Please check with the agencies listed in the Resources section for the most current information about this disorder.

For additional information and assistance about rare disorders, please contact the National Organization for Rare Disorders at P.O. Box 1968, Danbury, CT 06813-1968; phone (203) 744-0100; web site www.rarediseases.org or email orphan@rarediseases.org

Last Updated:  3/27/2012
Copyright  2012 National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.


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