Saturday, March 19, 2011

In Sickness and In Health

While doing the in sickness and health activity, it was found interesting that just because some people in your family might have a certain disease, there isnt a set chance that you or anyone else may get it. It was neat to see that some of them were just a spark and may not have appeared for any certain reason. While others either went to each generation or maybe even skipped a few but still continued a selevt pattern. It was amazing to see how different they all work.

Review:
While studying the information of the sickness and health, if a person was to have below 1% of the normal level of VIII, the smallest of cuts can cause uncontrolled internal bleeding. Why is this? Due to the fact of having a low level of VIII, causes the blood to be super thin. There is an injection of factor VIII that helps the blood to clot, making it less likely to cause uncontrolled bleeding. Internal bleeding, can cause complications such as: swelling, joint damage, and even an increased chance of neurological complications.  Very simple procedures can become too risky for a person with a low level of VIII. A person can either receive the injection of factor VIII monthly, or twice a year at a clinic. This is a therapy called prophylaxis.
A little bit more about factor VIII, its in the hemostatic system where the blood vessels have a huge role in a human beings survival. Hemophilia is the linked pattern of inheritance of bleeding diathesis. Due to the deficiency of factor F in the blood, hemophilia is caused. There was a test in the early 1900's and results found that normal plasma could shorten the blood clotting time of the hemophilic blood. It was soon found that a factor present in normal plasma showed to be effective to accelerate coagulation of the hemophilic blood. This was soon names the Factor VIII-C. Further testing is still to this day being tested and explored to see the roles of increased levels of factor VIII in a thrombophilic state. Factor VIII is a largely inherited disorder, with the proteins that are needed to form blood clots in the body is either missing or reduced. Studies show that around 30% of the cases of factor VIII show no family history of this disorder, although its the result of a spontaneous gene mutation. In some cases, the gene cane be "hidden". Numbers show around 1 in every 5,000 males have the factor. It doesnt affect a certain race or gender. The hemophilia gene is located on the X chromosome which everyone inherits. There is a product for people with VIII that is called desmopressin acetate (DDAVP) in order to treat small vuts.




Found this cool little bit of information!

Normal plasma levels of FVIII range from 50% to 150%. There are different levels of hemophilia: mild, moderate, and severe, depending on the amount of clotting factor in the blood:




People with mild hemophilia have 5% up to 50% of the normal clotting factor in their blood. Most patients usually have problems with bleeding only after serious injury, trauma or surgery. In many cases, mild hemophilia is not diagnosed until an injury, surgery or tooth extraction results in prolonged bleeding. The first episode may not occur until adulthood. Women with mild hemophilia often experience menorrhagia, heavy menstrual periods, and can hemorrhage after childbirth.



People with moderate hemophilia about, 15% of the hemophilia population, have 1% up to 5% of the normal clotting factor in their blood. They tend to have bleeding episodes after injuries and some without obvious cause. These are called spontaneous bleeding episodes.



People with severe hemophilia about 60% of the hemophilia population, have <1% of the normal clotting factor in their blood. They have bleeding following an injury and may have frequent spontaneous bleeding episodes, often into their joints and muscles
 
There are four possible outcomes for the baby of a woman who is a carrier. These four possibilities are repeated for each and every pregnancy:


1. A girl who is not a carrier

2. A girl who is a carrier

3. A boy without hemophilia

4. A boy with hemophilia

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