The prevention of liver disease in the hemophilic child

: The modern replacement therapy of inherited bleeding disorders has proved to be a major advance in the management of haemophilic children. However, the haemophiliacs, early treated with commercial clotting factor concentrates obtained from large amounts of plasma, are exposed to blood borne viruses responsible for post-transfusion hepatitis (PTH) and for their possible harmful long-term sequelae. Infact high prevalence of infection with hepatitis B virus, non-A, non-B agents, delta agent has been documented among haemophilic children. In this study we analyze the measures of surveillance at present available in order to reduce the risk of PTH in young haemophilic patients. Among these measures of prevention we point out the magnitude of administrating hepatitis B vaccine to susceptible children and of using antihaemophilic factor heat-treated to reduce infectivity in those children who have never been treated and without signs of active viral infections.