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Factor X deficiency
Definition:
Factor X deficiency is a disorder that causes abnormal blood clotting (coagulation), resulting from a shortage of a plasma protein called factor X. Alternative Names:
Stuart-Prower deficiency Text Continues Below
Causes, incidence, and risk factors:
Normal blood coagulation is a complex process involving as many as 20 different plasma proteins known as blood coagulation factors. A series of complex chemical reactions using these factors takes place very rapidly to form an insoluble protein fibrin that stops bleeding. When certain coagulation factors are deficient or missing, the chain reaction does not take place normally. Factor X deficiency is often caused by an inherited defect of the factor X gene, and bleeding ranges from mild to severe. Another cause of factor X deficiency is amyloidosis (a disorder in which insoluble protein fibers deposit in tissues and organs, impairing their function). Women with this condition may have severe menstrual bleeding and bleeding after delivery. Newborn boys with the condition may have prolonged bleeding after circumcision. Factor X deficiency affects 1 out of every 500,000 people.
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