Vitamin K Injection in Newborns
The blood clotting factors of newborn babies are roughly 30 to 60% that of adult values; this may be due to the reduced synthesis of precursor proteins and the sterility of their guts. Human milk contains 1-4 μg/l of vitamin K1, while formula-derived milk can contain up to 100 μg/l in supplemented formulas. Vitamin K2 concentrations in human milk appear to be much lower than those of vitamin K1. Occurrence of vitamin K deficiency bleeding in the first week of the infant's life is estimated at 0.25 to 1.7%, with a prevalence of two to 10 cases per 100,000 births. Premature babies have even lower levels of the vitamin, so are at a higher risk from this deficiency.
Bleeding in infants due to vitamin K deficiency can be severe, leading to hospitalizations, blood transfusions, brain damage and death. Supplementation can prevent most cases of vitamin K deficiency bleeding in the newborn. Intramuscular administration is more effective in preventing late vitamin K deficiency bleeding than oral administration.
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