New challenges in hemophilia: long-term outcomes and complications

Abstract

For the past 5 decades, the care for hemophilia patients has improved significantly to the point that a newborn with hemophilia living in a developed nation can expect to have a normal lifespan and a high quality of life. Despite this, there are several new challenges that the hemophilia community will face in the coming years. First, the hemophilia community will soon be challenged with adopting a variety of new agents into clinical practice. Second, the normalization of patients' lives as a result of improved treatment has led to new problem areas, including obese/overweight hemophiliacs and osteoporosis. In addition, although mortality rates are similar to those of the healthy population, morbidities such as hemophilic arthropathy still occur. Third, the cost of care continues to rise, both due to the development of expensive new therapies and to the costs of managing problems such as obesity and osteoporosis. Finally, most patients in the world with hemophilia receive little to no care and although this is an enormous challenge, it must be confronted. This review discusses some new challenges facing developing nations and their care for hemophilia patients. In summary, in hemophilia in the coming few years, several new challenges will need to be confronted.