Blood Disorders
Inherited Blood Disorders
If you have an inherited blood disorder, you’re in expert hands at UC Davis Health. As a designated Hemophilia Treatment Center, we provide comprehensive care for all types of blood conditions.
Medically reviewed by Brian Jonas, M.D. on Oct. 12, 2023.
Expert Care for Inherited Blood Disorders
The specialists at the UC Davis Hemostasis and Thrombosis Center provide exceptional care for these conditions. We provide leading-edge treatment options, including clinical trials. And our multispecialty team is ready to tend to all your physical and mental health needs.
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What Are Inherited Blood Disorders?
Blood (bleeding) disorders are conditions that affect the cells in your blood and how your blood clots. If you have an inherited bleeding or clotting disorder, you have genes (traits you were born with) that caused the condition.
The most common inherited blood disorders include:
- Clotting factor deficiencies
- Hemophilia
- Platelet disorders
- Sickle cell disease
- Thalassemia
- Thrombophilia
- von Willebrand disease
Symptoms of Inherited Blood Disorders
Most inherited bleeding disorders, including hemophilia, von Willebrand disease and blood factor deficiencies, prevent your blood from clotting. Other inherited blood conditions, such as thrombophilia, cause your blood to clot too much. The type of condition you have will determine your symptoms.
Common Symptoms
If you have an inherited bleeding disorder, you may notice signs of abnormal bleeding or a blood clot, which include:
- Blood in your urine or stool
- Excessive bleeding from minor cuts or injuries
- Extremely heavy menstrual periods
- Longer bleeding after dental work or shots
- Frequent nosebleeds
- Frequent or easy bruising
- Painful, swollen joints
- Purple or red spots under your skin
- Swelling and warmth in your leg
Emergency Symptoms
Without treatment, bleeding disorders can cause serious complications, like significant blood loss or a life-threatening clot. If you notice any of these signs, seek emergency medical care:
- Chest pain
- Coughing up blood
- Numbness or weakness on one side of your body
- Seizure
- Severe abdominal pain
- Shortness of breath
- Sudden severe headache
- Sudden vision changes
- Trouble speaking
- Uncontrolled bleeding
Causes of Inherited Blood Disorders
Gene mutations (changes) cause inherited blood disorders. If you have an inherited blood disorder, one or both of your parents has a gene mutation that they passed on to you.
Some bleeding disorders are autosomal dominant, so you can inherit the condition if one of your parents has the gene mutation. Other types are autosomal recessive, so you must receive the gene mutation from both parents to inherit the condition.
Testing for Inherited Blood Disorders
Our team is highly trained in diagnosing all types of inherited blood disorders. As a federally recognized Hemophilia Treatment Center (HTC), we provide a thorough workup to properly diagnose these conditions and create your treatment plan.
Your diagnosis starts with a physical exam and discussion of any symptoms and health concerns. Then, we may order blood tests to examine your blood cells and their ability to clot. In some cases, you may also need genetic testing and imaging tests. We talk with you about each test and walk you through what to expect.
Treatments for Inherited Blood Disorders
Our experienced team considers your needs and specific diagnosis when creating your treatment plan. We provide the most effective treatments available and work with ongoing clinical trials to discover new therapies.
Medications
If your blood doesn’t clot properly, you may need medicines that help stop or prevent bleeding. If you have an increased risk of clots, you may need blood-thinning medications.
Factor Replacement Therapy
We treat hemophilia, von Willebrand disease and other factor deficiencies with intravenous (IV) infusions of factors. This treatment replaces the missing factors in your blood to help it clot.
Gene Therapy
Our experts use innovative gene therapies to treat hemophilia A and B. This one-time infusion delivers a new gene to replace the gene mutation or missing protein in your blood.
Hemophilia A affects
1 in 5KU.S. males
von Willebrand disease affects
1%Of people in the U.S.
Sources: National Library of Medicine: Bleeding Disorders
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Data and Statistics on von Willebrand Disease
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