Joint Health Markers in Hemophilia: The State of the Art

Abstract

Hemophilia is a rare congenital bleeding disorder caused by a lack of or diminished activity of clotting factor VIII (hemophilia A) or IX (hemophilia B). This deficiency leads to an increase in spontaneous and traumatic bleeding especially in the large hinged joints. Joint bleeding may result in synovial inflammation and cartilage/bone damage, ultimately leading to irreversible hemophilic arthropathy (HA) [1]. Preventing hemarthroses and accurately monitoring joint status once arthropathy has developed, is of utmost importance to prevent invalidating arthropathy and subsequent major orthopedic interventions.