The Bleeding Assessment Tool (BAT) (BAT Protocol)

This study focuses on improving how doctors evaluate children who may have a mild bleeding disorder, such as von Willebrand disease or platelet function disorders. Doctors already use a standardized bleeding questionnaire to record a child's bleeding symptoms, but this can be difficult in younger children who often haven't had major bleeding challenges like surgery or dental work. To address this, the researchers added a small number of family history questions to the existing tool to see if knowing about bleeding problems in relatives helps predict whether a child truly has a bleeding disorder. The study reviews several years of existing medical records from children and young adults seen in a pediatric hematology clinic. By comparing the standard questionnaire with the expanded version that includes family history, the researchers want to see which approach more accurately identifies patients who go on to receive a confirmed diagnosis. The goal is to help clinicians decide more confidently who needs further testing and who does not, reducing unnecessary and costly lab work while improving diagnosis, especially for children under 8 years old, where bleeding symptoms alone may be misleading.