Introduction Pathologic anemia is defined by a red blood cell (RBC) mass inadequate to meet the oxygen needs of tissues. Neonates often require red cell transfusions due to a decreased red cell mass brought about by acute blood loss. Preterm…
Introduction Premature infants receive a greater number of transfusions and are exposed to a greater number of donors compared to any other hospitalized population. Transfusion guidelines are now used in many neonatal units; however, the search for the most appropriate…
Definition, etiologies, and implications of neonatal hemolytic anemia Neonatal hemolytic anemias (NHA) are a group of pathologic conditions manifesting with low hemoglobin (Hb) levels and/or red blood cell (RBC) counts due to premature destruction of erythrocytes during the perinatal period.…
Introduction Iron, although critically necessary, is both a good and a bad actor because excess unbound iron may be toxic. The physiologic window between the extremes of iron deficiency (ID) and excess is narrow. Official guidelines for identifying and managing…
Introduction Iron is critical for various tissues throughout the body, including red blood cells and the brain. While iron can be stored, it cannot be synthesized de novo in the body and therefore is an essential micronutrient that must be…
Introduction In 1929 Wintrobe published a method for measuring the percent of blood comprised of red cells—the hematocrit. Soon thereafter he reported a method for measuring the volume of the average circulating red blood cell (RBC), in femtoliters (fL, 10…
Introduction Unraveling the complexities of intrinsic mechanisms behind the normal transition of the suppressed in utero neutrophil into the fully operational postpartum cell has been a goal of neutrophil biologists for nearly a century. Even though neonatal neutrophils have been…
Introduction It is distinctly uncommon and definitely pathologic to have nucleated red blood cells (NRBCs) in the circulating blood. This statement is true for all humans—in fact, for all mammals—with the singular exception of newborn infants, where small numbers of…
Introduction: Necrotizing enterocolitis Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is an inflammatory bowel necrosis seen in infants who are either born extremely premature or are critically ill with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS). The intestinal injury in NEC begins in the mucosa and…
Introduction One of the most significant innovations in the routine management of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia was the publication of the 2004 clinical practice guidelines on the management of hyperbilirubinemia in late preterm and term newborns by the American Academy of Pediatrics…