Are women with von Willebrand disease more at risk for bleeding during pregnancy than at other times?
No. In fact, for women with Type 1 VWD the opposite is true. They have less bleeding than they normally do. This is because high hormone levels during pregnancy stimulate the production of blood clotting proteins. As a result, levels of von Willebrand factor and factor VIII rise closer to normal. Most women with Type 1 VWD have few bleeding problems during pregnancy, or during childbirth. Nevertheless, clotting levels should be monitored, especially as the date of delivery approaches. This way, doctors will know whether to prepare treatments. Some of the clotting factors needed by women with bleeding disorders are rarely used. The hospital blood bank will have to be alerted so that the factor concentrates are on hand if needed. Desmopressin can also be prescribed to raise VWF and factor VIII levels during delivery for women with Type 1 VWD. The levels of VWF will not rise for women with Type 3 VWD because they do not make any VWF. In Type 2 VWD, the levels of VWF will rise during pregn
