Treatment has become more affordable

More than 800 people with Haemophilia A and almost 150 people with Haemophilia B from the district regularly got injected with the respective factors in 2017 alone at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital in Trichy.
People with haemophilia and their families got much-needed relief since Factor VIII and Factor IX were made available for free at the hospital. The Haemophilia Society Trichy Chapter, which was founded in 1993, also has factors available 24x7 at a subsidised rate and has been providing guidance to 475 people with haemophilia and other bleeding disorders.
Though the awareness regarding haemophilia is less among the general public, Trichy has taken rapid strides in terms of treatment of haemophilia and even in performing surgeries for patients.


According to professor of medicine and in-charge for haemophilia drugs administration, Dr Usha Padmini Vadivelswamy, over the past few years, the treatment of haemophilia has become affordable for patients. "The factors are available for free at MGMGH now. Otherwise, one course of factor injections, which on an average could last up to four days, would cost at least Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000," she said.
A mother of a 12-year-old boy with haemophilia said that the availability of factors for free or at a subsidised rate is proving to be beneficial. "For children, haemophilia is a more painful experience, especially during the fall of every baby tooth," she added. She said that the availability of factors at MGMGH during the months of April and May is uncertain.
The hospitals in the city are also well-equipped for performing surgeries for persons with haemophilia, which is a risky procedure. In fact, there have been instances when as many as multiple surgeries were performed to patients successfully.
Several awareness drives are also being conducted in the city by Haemophilia Society Trichy Chapter. "Our aim is to make people know that with proper treatment, persons with haemophilia could also lead a healthy life," said president of the society Tara Sundararajan.

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