Which inheritance pattern does von Willebrand disease most commonly show?

Which inheritance pattern does von Willebrand disease most commonly show?

• A. Autosomal dominant
• B. Autosomal recessive
• C. X-linked recessive
• D. Mitochondrial inheritance

Answer: (A)

Von Willebrand disease is most commonly inherited in an autosomal dominant pattern. A single mutated copy of the VWF gene is usually enough to cause the disorder, so affected individuals often appear in every generation and both sexes are affected roughly equally. This fits the common forms, especially type 1 and many cases of type 2, which show variable expressivity with mild to moderate bleeding symptoms. There is an exception in that the rare type 3 form is autosomal recessive, needing two defective copies and typically causing more severe bleeding, but it is much less common overall. Modes of inheritance like X-linked recessive or mitochondrial would show different family patterns (predominantly affected males or maternal transmission to all children), which do not match the typical presentation of von Willebrand disease.

Von Willebrand disease is most commonly inherited in an autosomal dominant pattern. A single mutated copy of the VWF gene is usually enough to cause the disorder, so affected individuals often appear in every generation and both sexes are affected roughly equally. This fits the common forms, especially type 1 and many cases of type 2, which show variable expressivity with mild to moderate bleeding symptoms. There is an exception in that the rare type 3 form is autosomal recessive, needing two defective copies and typically causing more severe bleeding, but it is much less common overall. Modes of inheritance like X-linked recessive or mitochondrial would show different family patterns (predominantly affected males or maternal transmission to all children), which do not match the typical presentation of von Willebrand disease.