Anita Kar, School of Health Sciences, University of Pune, Pune 411007, India. [email protected]

Epidemiology and social costs of haemophilia in India India lacks a national policy on the prevention and control of genetic disorders. Although the hemoglobinopathies have received some attention, there is very little data on the epidemiology of other genetic disorders in India. Haemophilia, an inherited single gene disorder with an incidence of 1 per 10 000 births, manifests as spontaneous or traumainduced hemorrhagic episodes in patients, progressing to chronic disability and premature mortality in untreated patients or patients with sub-optimal treatment. Although the genetic basis of this disorder has been well studied in India, data on the number of patients, trends of the disorder in India, social costs of the condition and opportunities and competencies for offering genetic counseling through a public health programme have not been reported. Our research using haemophilia demonstrates the need for prevention and for the provision of care for patients. We have reported that India harbors the second highest number of global patients with bleeding disorders. The number of patients reported annually from India during the last five years, is more than those being reported from developed nations.