What to know
Hemophilia treatment centers (HTCs) provide specialized health care for people who have bleeding disorders. Use the HTC Directory to find where HTCs are located across the US.
Overview
Hemophilia is a complex disorder that can lead to chronic health problems such as joint disease over time. However, if the disorder is managed properly, people with hemophilia can live long, healthy lives. Good quality medical care from doctors and nurses who know a lot about the disorder can help prevent some serious problems. This type of specialty care can be found at a comprehensive hemophilia treatment center (HTC).
HTCs are specialized healthcare centers that bring together a team of doctors, nurses, and other health professionals experienced in treating people with hemophilia.1
Find an HTC Near You
The comprehensive care model
Each HTC provides access to multidisciplinary healthcare professionals:
- Lab medical technologists and pathologists
- Hematologists (doctors who specialize in blood)
- Orthopedists (doctors who specialize in bones, joints, and muscles)
- Physical therapists
- Nurses
- Social workers and other mental health professionals
- Other specialists available by referral (for example, dentist, nutritionist, genetic counselor)
Comprehensive HTCs emphasize prevention services to help reduce or eliminate complications. These services include using preventive medicine and connecting patients with community groups that provide education and support to families. For example, the National Bleeding Disorders Foundation partners with HTCs and CDC to educate people with this disorder about the top five ways to reduce complications.
Advancing knowledge and impacting practice
One of the major challenges facing researchers and scientists who work on rare disorders such as hemophilia is lack of access to uniform data. Federally funded HTCs throughout the United States can participate in CDC's Community Counts program, which collects a consistent set of data to monitor the health of people with hemophilia. The data are used to advance knowledge and eventually impact health practices for this condition and other related disorders.
- Baker JR, Crudder SO, Riske B, Bias V, Forsberg A. A model for a regional system of care to promote the health and well-being of people with rare chronic genetic disorders. Am J Public Health 2005; 95:1910-1916. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2004.051318
- Soucie JM, Nuss R, Evatt, B, Abdelhak A, Cowan L, Hill H, Kolakoski M, Wilber N, and the Hemophilia Surveillance System Project Investigators. Mortality among males with hemophilia: relations with source of medical care. Blood 2000; 96:437-442. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10887103/
- Soucie JM, Symons J, Evatt B, Brettler D, Huszti H, Linden J, and the Hemophilia Surveillance System Project Investigators. Home-based factor infusion therapy and hospitalization for bleeding complications among males with hemophilia. Haemophilia 2001; 7:198-206. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2516.2001.00484.x