Von Willebrand disease medical therapy
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Von Willebrand disease Microchapters |
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Diagnosis |
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Treatment |
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Von Willebrand disease medical therapy On the Web |
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Risk calculators and risk factors for Von Willebrand disease medical therapy |
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
Overview
Medical Therapy
Patients with vWD normally require no regular treatment, although they are always at increased risk for bleeding. For women with heavy menstrual bleeding, the combined oral contraceptive pill may be effective in reducing bleeding or in reducing the length or frequency of periods. Prophylactic treatment is sometimes given for patients with vWD who are scheduled for surgery. They can be treated with human derived medium purity factor VIII concentrates complexed to vWF(antihemophilic factor, more commonly known as Humate-P) Mild cases of vWD can be trialled on desmopressin (1-desamino-8-D-arginine vasopressin, DDAVP) (desmopressin acetate, Stimate), which works by raising the patient's own plasma levels of vWF by inducing release of vWF stored in the Weibel-Palade bodies in the endothelial cells.