Since the Coronation, the internet and magazines have been full of pictures of Royalty. So I thought it would be appropriate to post on the "Royal Disease", namely Haemophilia. Although this is not strictly related to taking anticoagulants, it is a serious disorder affecting clotting. Queen Victoria Queen Victoria was a carrier for Haemophilia. She had nine children. Her … [Read more...]
Factor V Leiden – What is Factor V?
In my introductory post about Factor V Leiden, I discussed how this is an inherited condition and relatively common affecting around 4% of people of European decent. In this post I will take you through some of the basics of clotting to help you understand why Factor V Leiden increases your risk of clots. Factor V Factor V Leiden is an abnormal form of the clotting … [Read more...]
Coronation and clotting
As the Coronation is taking place this week, I thought I should try to find some link between the Coronation and clotting. First, I tried to find out if any royals had suffered from clotting problems. George VI died from coronary thrombosis, and I am sure other Royal family members have had heart problems or venous thrombosis, but none seemed particularly interesting. I also … [Read more...]
Weekend reflection: Ethics of medical trials
Berlin This week I am in Berlin about to attend the International Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis meeting (ISTH 2017). It is a meeting where doctors and scientists present their latest research. The importance of ethics in research has been brought into sharp focus for me this week as Angela and I visited some of the historic sites in Berlin. Sachsenhausen Berlin is a … [Read more...]
The ‘F’ Words of Coagulation – Coagulation Science
A few weeks ago we started a series on the science of coagulation with a post on Taking the Pxxs. This was about the first stage of clotting called primary Haemostasis. In this post I am going to introduce the next phase. If you have ever studied any physiology and had to learn about blood coagulation I suspect you found it a bit complicated. I know from teaching medical … [Read more...]
