Sex-related differences in hemostasis and thrombosis

Disorders of thrombosis and hemostasis represent both diagnostic and therapeutic challenges for the clinician, in part because of sex-based differences in incidence and presentation. The hemophilias are characterized by specific sex-linked patterns of inheritance, and there are sex differences in the presentation of the autosomally inherited disorders, particularly von Willebrand's disease. The diagnosis of these disorders can be affected by variations in either endogenous or exogenous estrogens, and the hemostatic stresses presented by menstruation and childbirth render any coagulopathy more severe in females than in males. Women are also at increased risk for developing thrombotic and embolic problems while on exogenous estrogens and during pregnancy. This article presents recommendations about the most appropriate and cost-effective ways to screen for the inherited disorders of both thrombosis and hemostasis in men and women. Recommendations are also developed for the treatment of women with these disorders, particularly in the context of pregnancy, contraception, uterine bleeding, and postmenopausal management.