What is von Willebrand factor and what does it do?
When blood vessels are damaged, platelets (tiny particles in the blood) clump together at the site of injury; von Willebrand factor is like glue that makes these platelets stick to the areas of blood vessel that are damaged. von Willebrand factor also acts as a protector of clotting factor VIII. This means some people with von Willebrand disorder may also have a lower amount of factor VIII.
