Efficacy and safety of HaemoCer, a local hemostatic agent, in patients with congenital bleeding disorders: a case series

Aim To evaluate the efficacy and safety of HaemoCer in the management of bleeding symptoms in patients with congenital bleeding disorders. Methods In this case series, 11 patients with hereditary bleeding disorders (6 Hemophilia A, 3 Glanzmann thrombasthenia, one Von Willebrand disease, and one Factor X deficiency) were investigated between April and September 2021. All patients were registered at the Hemophilia Center affiliated with Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Southern Iran. The outcome of all patients was assessed after administration of HaemoCer™ PLUS Absorbable Polysaccharide Haemostat (APH), a plant-based hemostatic powder that augments the natural clotting cascade. Results The median age of the patients was 13 (range: 5-66) years, eight males and three females. The most common presenting symptoms at referral were epistaxis (63.6%) followed by gingival bleeding (18.2%). Overall, three (27.2%) patients (two with epistaxis and one with gingival bleeding) responded to HaemoCer without the need to any additional treatment. The rest of the patients needed further treatment for managing bleeding symptoms. The patients were followed for three months without the occurrence of any adverse events. Bleeding symptoms occurred in 10 patients during the follow-up period, only four patients agreed to use HaemoCer again, and two of them responded and needed no further treatment. Conclusion It seems that efficacy of HaemoCer is not optimal to use alone for the management of the local bleeding symptoms in all patients with congenital bleeding disorders, but it may work in some patients. However, it seems to be safe based on this study. Keywords: Bleeding disorder, bleeding symptom, case series, Glanzmann thrombasthenia, Hemophilia, local hemostatic agents, Von Willebrand disease