Hemophilia is a health condition in which a person’s blood does not clot properly. Individuals usually inherit this disorder from their parents. Hemophilia results from lower levels of certain proteins in a person’s blood. These proteins, known as factor VIII and factor IX, facilitate blood clotting if people sustain cuts or wounds. To diagnose this condition, doctors look out for certain typical indicators in a person’s body, some of which include:

1. Wounds that do not heal
The central problem in hemophilia is the body’s inability to heal wounds quickly. This is why people with this condition will lose a lot of blood whenever they sustain any kinds of bruises, cuts, or wounds. Additionally, the wounds and bruises in such individuals’ bodies remain fresh and, as a result, cause a lot of pain for extended periods. As this condition is primarily caused by a marked deficiency in factor VIII and factor IX levels in the body, treatments for this health condition also involve attempts to restore those levels for quick and efficient blood clotting.

2. Frequent cuts and bruises
While cuts, wounds, and bruises are common in most people’s everyday lives, someone with hemophilia experiences them much more frequently than others without the condition. So, if someone sustains injuries with an alarming frequency, they must visit their nearest healthcare center and get themselves checked for hemophilia.

3. Bleeding in the joints and brain
Internal bleeding is also common when it comes to hemophilia. People living with this condition often feel pain in their knees, elbows, and other joints because of internal bleeding in those areas of the body. Often, this bleeding occurs without any obvious injury. This internal bleeding causes tightness in a person’s joints without any visible signs of bleeding. Over some time, the joints become swollen, painful to bend, and hot to touch. As the bleeding progressively worsens, so does the swelling in the joints.

Bleeding in the brain is also a common indicator of hemophilia in people. Some indicators of brain bleeding include long-lasting and excruciating headaches, neck pain and stiffness, disrupted sleepiness and changes in behavior, repeated vomiting, sudden weakness or clumsiness in the arms or legs, issues while walking, seizures, and convulsions.

4. Double vision
Bleeding in the brain tends to cause the blood vessels in a person’s eyes to also get affected. Over time, this negatively impacts a person’s vision. As a result, people experience double vision frequently. If an individual has double vision or any other unexplained vision-related issue, they need to visit a doctor as quickly as possible for a checkup.

5. Heavy menstrual periods
Normally, men are more vulnerable to hemophilia than women. However, women with this condition tend to have heavy menstrual periods. In many cases, menstruation is prolonged and uncomfortable for women. As is the case with other symptoms of this health condition, heavy menstruation also involves a large amount of blood loss. Women who experience heavy menstrual cycles often incorrectly believe the symptom is related to reproductive or excretory health conditions.

Heavy menstruation is a massive red flag, and women with this symptom need to get themselves checked for hemophilia as quickly as possible to receive treatment.