Screening of behavioral disorders in children with hemophilia

To screen types of behavioral problems among children with hemophilia and their relation to the disease parameters.

Fifty boys, 6-18 years old, with moderate and sever hemophilia were subjected to: history taking, joint evaluation using the Hemophilia Joint Health Score, and behavioral assessment using the Child Behavioral Check List.

Patients experienced different patterns of behavior disorder. Patients' age significantly correlated with anxious/depressed behavior, somatic complaints, social problems, aggressive behavior, internalizing behavior, and total behavior problems. Hemophilia severity significantly correlated with social problems, thought problems, aggressive behavior, internalizing behavior, externalizing behavior, and total behavior disorders. Affected joint number significantly correlated with withdrawn/depressed behavior, social problems, thought problems, aggressive behavior, internalizing behavior, and total behavior disorders. A high Hemophilia Joint Health Score of the target joints was significantly correlated with social problems, rule-breaking behavior, aggressive behavior, externalizing behavior, and total behavior disorders. Hemophilic arthropathy duration significantly correlated with somatic complaints, social problems, thought problems, attention problems, aggressive behavior, internalizing behavior, externalizing behavior, and total behavior problems.

Children with hemophilia had behavioral disorders. The most affected scale was aggressive behavior. The least affected scale was attention problems. Behavioral disorders in children with hemophilia are influenced by the age of the patient, the severity of the disease, the number of joints affected, the duration of hemophilic arthropathy, and the score of joint affected by Hemophilia Joint Health Score.