Homoeopathic Management of a Case of Severe Haemophilia Type A with Inhibitor Positive: Case Report

Abstract

AbstractHaemophilia is an X-linked inherited immunogenetic bleeding disorder resulting from deficiency of clotting Factor VIII (haemophilia A) or Factor IX (haemophilia B). Haemophilia patients suffer from complication of developing autoantibodies/inhibitor against clotting factors used for the treatment; most commonly patients are treated with Factor VIII replacement therapy. In modern medicine, haemophiliacs with inhibitor positive status are treated with bypassing agents such as Factor VIII inhibitor bypassing agent and immune tolerance induction therapy (ITI) because such patients do not respond to traditional factor replacement therapy during an event of active bleeding. Treatment with ITI is very expensive and it requires medical expertise. Moreover, high cost of such treatment is one part of the problem, while its availability is another problem especially in developing countries. The inhibitor status among haemophilia patients is identified by conducting a blood test which measures the Bethesda units (BU) levels in the blood. In this case report, the homoeopathic management of a patient with haemophilia A severe type (Factor VIII <1%), inhibitor positive (4 BU/mL), is presented. The patient underwent treatment for a span of 4 years. After closely assessing the patient's condition and applying the principles of homeopathy medicine selection, his frequent bleeding episodes were treated with homoeopathic medicines such as Hamamelis Virginica Q, Phosphorus, Arnica montana, Rhus toxicodendron, Calendula officinalis, and Pulsatilla nigricans. Intercurrent medicine—Tuberculinum bovinum—was given when the most indicated medicine failed to relieve the symptoms of the case and was given during non-bleeding phase. The medicines not only helped in reducing haemophilia-related bleeding episodes but also improved complaints of pain, relieved skin complaints, and showed improvement in overall psychological status of patient. It can be concluded that homeopathy medicines were able to successfully reduce the frequency of bleeding and intensity of pain in this patient. Owing to reduced bleeding, he required relatively a smaller number of factor replacement treatment compared with earlier when he was not taking homeopathy. Homoeopathy proved to be effective in managing severe haemophilia patient as a supportive therapy and was able to contribute toward reduced inhibitor levels in severe haemophilia patient.