“Stay fit for life”- Inspiriting a generation at Haemophilia Fitness Camp to train coaches

United Arab Emirates, Dubai, January 21- There has been tremendous progress over the past few years to greatly improve the quality of life of people with bleeding disorders. An effective and safe routine treatment should be encouraged to promote the standard of hemophilia care in the world, therefore it is important to give haemophiliac the confidence that they can do daily chores to help them be more independent and productive as we cannot always be with them; they must take the journey by themselves. Just going out and doing some exercise is also a form of heroism.

Hemophilia is a lifelong blood clotting disorder that affects primarily one in every 5,000 males. The blood fails to clot normally because of a deficiency or an abnormality of one of the clotting factors which can cause prolonged or spontaneous bleeding, especially in the muscles, joints, or internal organs. A person with hemophilia does not bleed more profusely or faster than normal, but bleeding may last longer.

Without treatment, hemophilia can cause crippling pain, severe joint damage, disability, and even early death. The two most common types are hemophilia A and B. Although there is no cure for hemophilia, there are effective treatments available, and with adequate care, people born with hemophilia do not have to die young. Hemophilia experts are concerned about the urgency of educating medical professionals as well as parents and caregivers on the latest in the management of the disorder.

The enemy of hemophiliacs is muscle weakness, which may lead to arthritis and bleeding into the joints (haemarthrosis) as well as subsequent joint damage (arthropathy). By adulthood, 23.5% of all people with severe haemophilia will have developed one or more ‘target joints’ that carry an increased risk of recurrent bleeds and are functionally impaired. The knees, elbows and ankles account for 80% of joint bleeds. Despite advances in treatment and care, joint bleeding and arthropathy remain among the most common complications of haemophilia and are major concerns of both healthcare professionals and people with haemophilia, therefore it is recommended that children with haemophilia exercise to improves fitness and bone health, reduce bleeding episodes into joints, reduce joint deterioration as well as obesity, hence improve quality of life. Strong muscles will protect joints, increase strength, mobility, and function, as well as reduce joint pain. Doing the treadmill, walking regularly or swimming are the best exercises as it takes care of all the joints in the body. Cycling is a good exercise to protect joints and maintain a fitness level as well, but care must also be taken, as in other sports such as bowling, running, and basketball. Contact sports such as football and soccer are definitely not recommended.  “They can take part in any physical activity, but like any other, there should be sufficient warm-up and cool-down. Keeping yourself fit and healthy means that you are always ready for anything that life throws at you.” say health care professionals.

As part of Novo Nordisk commitments to changing possibilities in haemophilia®, Novo Nordisk Haemophilia Foundation organizes every year, worldwide, a “Global Haemophilia Fitness Camp”.

A three days event run by multidisciplinary dedicated team of healthcare professionals, and developed to empowering local healthcare providers with skills and expertise through training and fellowships, along with people with haemophilia and their carers, to address the importance of physical activity, so they can come together to learn about healthy lifestyle, sample new activities, help to build strong support network, as well as how it can be safely introduced into the everyday lives of haemophiliac.

The activities at the camp curriculum are designed for real life application so that will be easy for attendees to continue at home what they have learned, to build self-confidence and determination in the young participants with hemophilia. It also fostered healthy relationships.

Dubai will host the “Global Haemophilia Fitness Camp” this year on 28th, 29th and 30th of January at Conrad Hotel, one of the luxurious five stars hotels in Sheikh Zayed Road.  

Led by a team of global and regional experts in the field, the Inspiriting a generation: Fitness in Haemophilia  training program has been created to train 73 health care professionals involved in the multidisciplinary care of people living with haemophilia, in 21 hospitals and health care centers all over the GCC countries. This conference is designed to equip Health Care Professionals with tools and knowledge to organize and run a fitness Camp for patients; Showcasing a number of important topics and trainings, the interactive sessions will provide healthcare professionals with a chance to complete their own notes of how to set up a Haemophilia Fitness Camp in their area, with the help and advice of experts.

A fitness camp can be set up in an easy way with a necessary support of multidisciplinary team of Hematologist, special nurse, physiotherapist as well as your local patients association. Novo Nordisk packaged an explicit toolkit which can help in your set up steps, with the valuable support of their representatives, available all over the world.