What Is Thrombophilia?

Thrombophilia is a condition in which the natural process of blood clotting in the body increases. Thrombophilia is often referred to as gout. Thrombophillia has no symptoms. However, blood clots formed due to excessive blood clotting can be dangerous. Blood clots can occur in arteries and veins. Arteries are blood vessels that function as a channel to drain blood to the organs and tissues of the body, while veins are blood vessels that function as a channel to restore blood from organs or tissues to the heart.

Blood clots that occur in veins, or commonly called deep vein thrombosis , are the most common problems. Symptoms that usually appear are swelling and pain in the legs, and the skin looks reddish. This condition can cause complications in the form of pulmonary embolism, which is when blood clots release into the arteries of the lungs. Symptoms that arise during pulmonary embolism are chest pain, pain during coughing, shortness of breath, or even decreased consciousness.

Blood clots can also occur in other body parts, such as the brain and heart, resulting in strokes or heart attacks at a young age. In addition, thrombophilia is at risk of causing problems during pregnancy, such as recurrent miscarriages or preeclampsia .


Causes of Thrombophilia
Thrombophilia arises because of an imbalance in the body's natural substances that play a role in the blood clotting process, one of which is due to hereditary genetic factors. Thrombophilia associated with genetic factors has several types, namely:

• Protein C, protein S, or antithrombin III deficiency. Protein C, protein S, and anthitrombin III are natural substances of the body that are anticoagulant or function to prevent blood clots that occur. When the amount of these substances decreases, the process of preventing blood clots will also be disrupted. The impact, blood clots will increase. Apart from hereditary factors, the condition can also be caused by an illness, such as kidney disease .
• Prothrombin 20210. Prothrombin is a protein that helps the blood clotting process. In this condition, prothrombin production increases so that freezing occurs excessively.
• Factor V Leiden. Similar to prothrombin 20210, the V Leiden factor is also a type of thrombophilia caused by a genetic disorder. However, the location of gene mutations that occur in factor V Leiden and prothrombin 20210 are different.

Besides being caused by hereditary factors, thrombophilia can also be caused or triggered by several other factors, such as:

• Age
• Pregnancy
• Immobilization or immobilization for a long time
• Inflammation
• Obesity
• Antiphospholipid syndrome
• Sickle cell anemia or hemolytic anemia
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• Use of birth control pills
• Middle of undergoing hormone replacement therapy

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Diagnosis of Thrombophilia
Someone who has a blood clot under the age of 40 years should be suspected of having thrombophilia. In addition, to diagnose thrombophilia, the doctor can do a blood test and this blood test can be done repeatedly. However, there are several provisions related to the time before the test was conducted.

For patients who suffer from deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism , often have to wait several weeks or months after recovering, to undergo the test. Even if patients use blood thinning drugs ( anticoagulants ), such as warfarin, new tests can be done 4-6 weeks after the use of the drug has been stopped.

When a blood test done shows that the patient has thrombophilia, then further tests will be carried out to get more detailed results. Patients will be advised to consult directly with a blood specialist doctor (hematologist).


Treatment of Thrombophilia
Thrombophilia sufferers generally do not need treatment. However, doctors need to see how much risk might arise due to an increase in blood clots. The amount of risk that depends on:

• Age
• Lifestyle
• History of the disease and medication being used
• Type of thrombophilia suffered
• Weight

Drug use is usually intended to overcome complications from thrombophilia, such as deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism. Drugs used to treat excessive blood clotting in the body are blood thinning drugs, such as warfarin or heparin .

Warfarin is a blood thinning drug that is heavily influenced by food and other medicines consumed. In order for the treatment to be effective, the doctor will increase or decrease the warfarin dose adjusted to the INR blood test results. The INR serves to assess a person's blood clotting time. Consult your doctor about the recommended INR value, to prevent blood clots from forming again.

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