Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Jan;25(1):101-108.
doi: 10.1111/hae.13629. Epub 2018 Nov 14.

Sports participation and physical activity in patients with von Willebrand disease

Ferdows Atiq  1 , Eveline P Mauser-Bunschoten  2 , Jeroen Eikenboom  3   4 , Karin P M van Galen  2 , Karina Meijer  5 , Joke de Meris  6 , Marjon H Cnossen  7 , Erick A M Beckers  8 , Britta A P Laros-van Gorkom  9 , Laurens Nieuwenhuizen  10 , Johanna G van der Bom  11   12 , Karin Fijnvandraat  13 , Frank W G Leebeek  1 ; WiN study group
Affiliations

Sports participation and physical activity in patients with von Willebrand disease

Ferdows Atiq et al. Haemophilia. 2019 Jan.

Abstract

Introduction: Patients with bleeding disorders may experience limitations in sports participation and physical activity. Several studies on sports participation have been performed in haemophilia patients, but studies in patients with von Willebrand disease (VWD) are lacking.

Aim: We assessed the sports participation and physical activity of a large cohort of VWD patients.

Methods: Patients were included from the "WiN study." All patients completed a questionnaire on sports participation, physical activity, quality of life and bleeding symptoms (Tosetto bleeding score).

Results: From the 798 included patients, 474 had type 1, 301 type 2 and 23 type 3 VWD. The mean age was 39 ± 20 (standard deviation) years. Five hundred and fifty-two patients (69.3%) participated in various types of sports. Type 3 VWD patients more often did not participate in sports due to fear of bleeding and physical impairment, respectively, OR = 13.24 (95% CI: 2.45-71.53) and OR = 5.90 (95% CI: 1.77-19.72). Patients who did not participate in sports due to physical impairment had a higher bleeding score item for joint bleeds 1.0 (±1.6) vs 0.5 (± 1.1) (P = 0.036). Patients with type 3 VWD and patients with a higher bleeding score frequently had severe limitations during daily activities, respectively, OR = 9.84 (95% CI: 2.83-34.24) and OR = 1.08 (95% CI: 1.04-1.12).

Conclusion: The majority of VWD patients participated in sports. Patients with type 3 VWD, a history of joint bleeds and a more severe bleeding phenotype frequently experienced limitations in sports participation and physical activities during daily life.

Keywords: physical activity; quality of life; sports; von Willebrand disease.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

F Atiq received research support from CSL Behring. FWG Leebeek received research support from CSL Behring and Shire for performing the Willebrand in the Netherlands (WiN) study, and is consultant for UniQure, Novo Nordisk and Shire, of which the fees go to the institution, and is a member of a DSM board for Roche. J Eikenboom received research support from CSL Behring and he has been a teacher on educational activities of Roche. KPM van Galen received unrestricted research support from CSL Behring and Bayer. EP Mauser‐Bunschoten received unrestricted research/educational support from CSL Behring, Bayer, Baxter, Grifols, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, Biotest and Sanquin. JG van der Bom has received unrestricted research/educational funding for various projects from the following companies: Bayer Schering Pharma, Baxter, CSL Behring, Novo Nordisk, and Pfizer. In addition, she has been a consultant to Baxter and Pfizer, and she has been a teacher on educational activities of Bayer Schering Pharma. MH Cnossen has received unrestricted research/educational funding for various projects and travel grants from NOW‐ZonMW, Innovatiefonds and the following companies: Pfizer, Baxter, Bayer Schering Pharma, CSL Behring, Novo Nordisk and Novartis, and serves as a member on steering boards of Roche and Bayer. K Fijnvandraat is a member of the European Hemophilia Treatment and Standardization Board sponsored by Baxter, has received unrestricted research grants from CSL Behring and Bayer, and has given lectures at educational symposiums organized by Pfizer, Bayer and Baxter. K Meijer received research support from Bayer, Baxter, Sanquin and Pfizer; speaker fees from Bayer, Sanquin, Boehringer Ingelheim, BMS and Aspen; consulting fees from Uniqure. BAP Laros‐van Gorkom has received unrestricted educational grants from Baxter and CSL Behring. None of the other authors has a conflict of interest to declare.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Types of sports performed by VWD patients
Figure 2
Figure 2
Proportion of VWD patients with severe limitations during daily life. Ns, not significant; *P < 0.05
Figure 3
Figure 3
Participation in various types of sports in males aged 16‐55 y with VWD and haemophilia compared to the general population. Data on haemophilia and general population derived from Heijnen et al13
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Leebeek FW, Eikenboom JC. Von Willebrand's disease. N Engl J Med. 2016;375:2067‐2080. - PubMed
    1. Sadler JE, Budde U, Eikenboom JC, et al. Update on the pathophysiology and classification of von Willebrand disease: a report of the Subcommittee on von Willebrand Factor. J Thromb Haemost. 2006;4:2103‐2114. - PubMed
    1. Von RF. Willebrand disease: pathogenesis and management. Thromb Res. 2013;131(Suppl 1):S47‐S50. - PubMed
    1. de Wee EM, Sanders YV, Mauser‐Bunschoten EP, et al. Determinants of bleeding phenotype in adult patients with moderate or severe von Willebrand disease. Thromb Haemost. 2012;108:683‐692. - PubMed
    1. van Galen KP, Sanders YV, Vojinovic U, et al. Joint bleeds in von Willebrand disease patients have significant impact on quality of life and joint integrity: a cross‐sectional study. Haemophilia. 2015;21:e185‐e192. - PubMed