Does stress affect bleeding in hemophilia? A review of the literature.

Many bleeding episodes in hemophilia are thought to be related to ambient stress. The evidence in support of this hypothesis comes from a variety of anecdotal and clinical reports. Whether or not stress leads to bleeding has had little direct study in a prospective way, however, and methodological problems affect most of the studies in this field. This paper examines the evidence in support of this hypothesis and suggests ways to improve research relating stress to bleeding.