Bleeding Disorders Awareness Month

Senior Care in Colts Neck NJ

March is Bleeding Disorders Awareness Month, a recognized health observance set aside as a time to learn about and raise awareness of bleeding disorders and how they can be detected, treated, and managed. If you are on a senior care journey with an elderly parent who has a bleeding disorder, or who you think may have a bleeding disorder, this is an ideal opportunity for you to explore these disorders more extensively and find out what you can do to help your parent to not only deal with the disorder and manage it on a daily basis, but to truly life an active, healthy, and enjoyable quality of life with the disorder.

Bleeding disorders are characterized by the body’s inability to properly form a clot. There are several different types of bleeding disorders, including:

  • Von Willebrand disease. The most common of all bleeding disorders, Von Willebrand disease, or VWD, occurs in both men and women and is thought to impact up to 1 percent of the total population of the United States. This genetic condition is caused by the lack of a clotting protein referred to as the Von Willebrand factor, named for the doctor who first described it. 60 to 80 percent of those with this condition have what is called Type 1 VWD that produces mild symptoms. 5 to 10 percent have Type 3 VWD which can produce very severe symptoms including spontaneous bleeding episodes in their muscles and joints. Symptoms usually include easy bruising, frequent nosebleeds, and excessive bleeding after medical procedures
  • Hemophilia A. Also known as “classic hemophilia,” hemophilia A is a genetic disorder that occurs in approximately 1 out of every 5000 live births across all ethnic groups and races. While it is possible for a female to have hemophilia, that is, exhibit the symptoms, it is extremely rare. Generally women are carriers, meaning they can pass it along to their children. If a male has a chromosome with hemophilia, he will have hemophilia. This condition is most often very severe and causes excess, sometimes uncontrollable, bleeding.
  • Hemophilia B. Approximately four times less likely than hemophilia A, hemophilia B occurs due to the lack of a different clotting factor, or the presence of a defective clotting factor. Just as with hemophilia A, this disorder occurs most often in men but can be carried and passed down to children through the X chromosome of either the mother or the father.

 

If you notice any of the following symptoms in your aging parent, get in touch with his doctor and make an appointment for a thorough examination so that he can receive a proper diagnosis and start on the appropriate course of treatment for his particular needs:

  • Excessive bleeding after a minor injury such as a scratch, cut, or bite
  • Frequent and long-lasting nosebleeds
  • Inability to stop bleeding
  • Frequent and extensive bruising
  • Excessive bleeding after a medical or dental procedure
  • The appearance of a bleed in the eye
  • Sudden heaviness, stiffness, swelling, or pain in the joints.

 

If you or an aging loved one are considering senior care in Colts Neck, NJ, please contact the caring staff at Lares Home Care 1-800-781-7435 or 732-566-1112.

 

Source: https://www.hemophilia.org/Newsroom/NHF-Community-News/March-Declared-Bleeding-Disorders-Awareness-Month