Haemophilia is a life threatening, life long condition caused by absence of or defective coagulation factors. People with haemophilia tend to bleed internally into joints and muscles, which can lead to pain. Pain is a distressing symptom that can affect people with haemophilia in a number of ways. A bleed into a joint can cause acute, severe pain whereas the long-term effects of recurrent bleeds can lead to chronic and disabling symptoms. People with haemophilia use different types of analgetics for pain relief. Patients with haemophilia need to manage psychological pain, too. A high percentage of hemophiliac patients suffer from from different psychological problems, most common anxiety, depression and somatization disorders. Physical and psychological pain need to be differentiated and assessed correctly in order to be managed properly.

According to our clinical experiences, several patients with haemophilia were abusing analgetics to reduce and control comorbid anxiety or depression.

Aim of our study will be to evaluate the analgetic use in patients with haemophilia. We will evaluate the medical records of 180 patients with haemophilia from Slovenian Haemophilia society and search for type of analgetics, indications for its prescription and potential complications: physical and psychiatric side effects (overdoses, analgetic abuse or misuse. The pattern of the analgetic use will be compared to the results of the quality of life questionnaire and functional parameters of the large joints.