The existing scenario of haemophilia care in Canada and China - A review

Hemophilia is an X-linked recessive genetic disorder which affects approximately 400,000 people globally. Differing healthcare reimbursement systems, budgetary constraints and geographical and cultural factors make it difficult for any country to fully deliver ideal care. Although developed countries have sufficient treatment products available, they are burdened by the higher expectation of outcomes, coupled with insufficient supportive care to monitor adherence and outcomes and to implement regular follow-up. In contrast, developing regions may not have ready access to factor replacement, but have developed excellent physiotherapy and rehabilitation programs. Although there are multiple studies that have attempted to assess country-specific variations in hemophilia care, very few compare hemophilia care between economically unequal countries and the challenges in achieving optimal hemophilia care. This literature review tries to bridge this gap and throws light on the country-specific differences in epidemiology, standard of hemophilia care and challenges faced in Canada and China. Data sources resulted in 20 studies (11 from Canada and 9 from China), which were reviewed. In a developed country, the main advantages are: the early treatment of bleeding episodes and the presence of a specialized interdisciplinary and comprehensive treatment concept. This is not the case in most developing countries, where the government does not have the resources to buy the necessary quantities of coagulation factors in the face of more urgent health priorities and hardly a few patients can afford to pay for their own treatment, even the on-demand home therapy.