
the prevention of crippling
in haemophilic children
children who are severely affected with haemo-
philia or christmas disease suffer repeated
haemorrhages into joints and muscles after trivial
injuries.  these episodes of bleeding produce
cumulative crippling.  the haemarthroses tend to be
recurrent; each episode produces some damage to
the joint surface and the immobility during con-
valescence leads to muscle weakness.  thus after
recovery the joint becomes increasingly liable to
renewed bleeding.  the deep muscle haematomata
can produce crippling by actual destruction of
muscle tissue, by pressure on important nerves or
arteries, by contractures which develop during
healing and by failure of resolution of the original
haematoma leading to chronic cyst formation.
