Why your newborn needs vitamin K?
Why your baby needs vitamin K. Vitamin K helps your baby's blood to clot and prevents serious bleeding. Most babies are born with low levels of vitamin K. Because of this, they need extra vitamin K. Vitamin K prevents a rare but serious bleeding disorder called vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB). About 1 in 10,000 babies develops VKDB.
Why is vitamin K is given to a newborn?
Things to remember
- Vitamin K is needed for blood clotting.
- Newborn babies are given vitamin K injections to prevent a serious disease called haemorrhagic disease of the newborn (HDN).
- Vitamin K can be given by mouth if preferred, but oral doses aren’t as effective.
Does my newborn need vitamin K?
Yes, health experts recommend that all newborns get a dose of vitamin K at birth. Babies aren't born with enough of this important vitamin, which is needed for blood to clot normally. Babies who don't get vitamin K at birth are at risk for a potentially fatal bleeding disorder called vitamin K deficient bleeding (VKDB). VKDB can cause bruising or bleeding in nearly every organ of the body.
Why give newborns vit K?
What medicine do they give newborns?
- Hepatitis B vaccination. Hepatitis B is a serious disease that infects and damages the liver. …
- Vitamin K Injection. Vitamin K is needed to make blood clot. …
- Erythromycin Eye Ointment.
Why are newborns given a single injection of vitamin K?
Low levels of vitamin K can lead to dangerous bleeding in newborns and infants. The vitamin K given at birth provides protection against bleeding that could occur because of low levels of this essential vitamin.
For which reason is vitamin K is administered to newborns?
Vitamin K is needed to form blood clots and to stop bleeding. Babies are born with very small amounts of vitamin K stored in their bodies, which can lead to a serious bleeding problem known as vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB).
Can you refuse vitamin K shot at birth?
Although the Vitamin K shot is safe and, as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, has been routinely given to newborns at birth since 1961, some parents refuse the shot due to myths and misperceptions about its safety.
What happens if vitamin K is not given at birth?
Without enough vitamin K, your baby has a chance of bleeding into his or her intestines, and brain, which can lead to brain damage and even death. Infants who do not receive the vitamin K shot at birth can develop VKDB up to 6 months of age.
What is the effect of low vitamin K on infants?
Infants are therefore predisposed to having low vitamin K levels, resulting in low levels of vitamin K-dependent clotting factors, and an increased risk for bleeding, termed vitamin K deficiency bleeding.
What is the purpose of vitamin K?
Vitamin K refers to a group of structurally similar fat- soluble molecules that are primarily involved in the synthetic pathways of a number of clotting factors. Vitamin K is also involved in bone metabolism.
How do you get vitamin K?
Adults get vitamin K from food — mainly leafy green vegetables — and from bacterial synthesis in the gut. Babies have very little vitamin K in their bodies at birth because only small amounts of the vitamin pass through the placenta. Also, the bacteria that produce the vitamin in the newborn’s intestines are not yet present. Breast milk contains only low levels of vitamin K, and it may take weeks to months for the infant’s ‘sterile’ gut to become established and functional. Infants are therefore predisposed to having low vitamin K levels, resulting in low levels of vitamin K-dependent clotting factors, and an increased risk for bleeding, termed vitamin K deficiency bleeding.
What is early VKDB?
Early VKDB is severe, and is mainly found in infants whose mothers used certain medications during pregnancy that interfere with vitamin K metabolism, such as certain anticonvulsants or isoniazid. Classical VKDB is typically characterized by bruising or bleeding from the umbilicus.
How long does it take for a newborn to get a sterile gut?
Breast milk contains only low levels of vitamin K, and it may take weeks to months for the infant’s ‘sterile’ gut to become established and functional.
Does vitamin K prevent VKDB?
Infants who do not get the vitamin K shot at birth are at 81 times greater risk for developing VKDB than infants who do get the shot. VKDB is effectively prevented by the vitamin K shot — incidence of late VKDB, the most concerning type, falls to less than 1/100,000 infants when vitamin K is given at birth.
Is Vitamin K safe?
A study from the early 1990’s found a possible link between intra muscular vitamin K administration and leukemia. Multiple follow-up studies did not confirm these findings.
How many cases of Vitamin K bleeding in a baby?
In those countries, the rates of Vitamin K bleeding from not having enough Vitamin K are close to 80 cases per 100,000 babies, and it drops down to about 6 cases per 100,000 babies after they introduced supplements through either the oral dose or the shot.
How many babies bleed with vitamin K?
In countries that use some kind of Vitamin K supplementation for newborns, cases of bleeding dropped from about 9 babies bleeding for every 100,000 births to 0.8 cases of bleeding per 100,000 births, and rates are closer to 0 when the Vitamin K shot is used instead of the oral dose of Vitamin K. Now, rates of bleeding are higher in low income ...
What is the cause of late onset vitamin K deficiency bleeding in young infants?
Schulte et al. (2014). “Rise in late onset vitamin K deficiency bleeding in young infants because of omission or refusal of prophylaxis at birth.” Pediatr Neurol 50 (6): 564-8.
What are some examples of vitamin K deficiency?
A great example is a set of twins that were born in Tennessee. The parents declined the Vitamin K at birth and a couple of months later, one of the twins developed a severe brain bleed. Both of the twins had severe Vitamin K deficiency, but only one of them developed a brain bleed. It just goes to show you that we cannot tell which babies will ...
Why does my baby bleed?
The only reason the baby starts bleeding is because they don’t have enough Vitamin K in order to keep their blood clotting appropriately. The main risk factors for getting that kind of bleeding are either: one, not getting the Vitamin K shot after birth; and two, exclusive breastfeeding.
Can Vitamin K cause bleeding?
Bleeding due to Vitamin K deficiency is rare, but the consequences are potentially catastrophic and it happens suddenly without warning. The bleeding in the brain that happens with Vitamin K deficiency is not related to, you know, the baby getting a knock on the head or something.
Why Vitamin K Injection for NewBorns is needed
Not long after baby is born your nurse will give your baby a shot of Vitamin K, and she’ll likely ask you to nurse baby while this happens for baby’s comfort. This injection isn’t a vaccine. Vitamin K is a naturally occurring substance we get from the food we eat and it’s made in our intestines by bacteria.
Vitamin K Deficiency Bleeding
Not having enough vitamin K in baby’s first days can lead to something called vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB), which though rare, can be life-threatening. This type of bleeding can happen to any baby of any age, with or without risk factors, if they don’t get a vitamin K shot at birth.
When should vitamin K be given to newborns?
All newborns receive a vitamin K shot within the first six hours of birth. And you won’t have to ask for it: Getting the vitamin K shot is a standard practice that the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) first started recommending for all newborns in 1961.
Why do babies need vitamin K?
Never heard of vitamin K? It helps the blood to clot — which is why all babies need a shot of it before they leave the hospital.
What is vitamin K and what does it do?
Vitamin K is a fat-soluble vitamin the body uses to clot the blood and stop bleeding. Unlike other fat-soluble vitamins, very little vitamin K is carried in the blood. Most is quickly metabolized by the body and excreted.
How to prevent VKDB in newborn?
Getting a vitamin K shot in the hours after birth is the best way to prevent VKDB in babies. In fact, babies who don’t receive a vitamin K shot are 81 times more likely to have VKDB than those who do.
Can VKDB cause brain damage?
Newborns who have VKDB may bleed anywhere in their bodies, including the brain, stomach and intestines, and their bodies aren’t able to clot the blood to make the bleeding stop. Although babies with VKDB may have no noticeable symptoms, some have blood in their stool or urine, or they may ooze blood around the umbilical cord stump. Babies with VKDB may require blood transfusions or surgery, and bleeding in the brain can lead to permanent brain damage or worse.
Where does vitamin K come from?
We get most of our vitamin K from green leafy vegetables, although some animal-based foods (such as chicken and ham) contain it in much smaller amounts. The good bacteria in our guts also produce a little vitamin K.
Is it safe to take vitamin K?
The vitamin K shot is safe, even though in the early 1990s, British researchers published data that found an association between vitamin K injections in newborns and childhood leukemia. But since then, many scientists have looked at the same data as well as additional research and found no link.
Is there a multivitamin that contains vitamin K?
maternal vitamin K supplements of 5mg/day (800% RDA) has been shown in one study to raise infant serum levels to near formula-fed levels, but there is no FDA approved multi-vitamin that contains this amount of vitamin K.
Is vitamin K a risk factor for ALL?
Many studies since then in Europe and in US have refuted this claim and found no association between the two. Only one other study (aside from 1992 paper from the same author) suggested a possible association between vitamin K and the risk of ALL.
Does vitamin K1 cause hyperbilirubinemia?
Vitamin K1 has been associated with hyperbilirubinemia only in extremely high doses (25 – 30mg). The effect was particularly seen in premies, though it was also present - albeit to a lesser degree - in term infants. This has not been a problem when vitamin K1 is given in normal therapeutic doses (0.5 - 1mg).
Is vitamin K deficient bleeding a prophylaxis?
Guidelines for Vitamin K Prophylaxis. The success of vitamin K prophylaxis has been so dramatic that many practi tioners have never seen an infant af flicted with "Hemorrhagic Disease of the Newborn," now known as "Vitamin K Deficient Bleeding.". It is a popular trend in some areas to refuse prophylaxis in an effort to keep things "natural" for ...
Does vitamin K cause jaundice?
There were reports of hemolytic anemia and hyperbilirubinemia severe enough to cause kernicterus in the mid 1950s with high doses (50mg) of vitamin K2 (menadione). As a result, use of this form of vitamin K was abandoned. We now give infants vitamin K1 (phytonadione). Vitamin K1 has been associated with hyperbilirubinemia only in extremely high doses (25 – 30mg). The effect was particularly seen in premies, though it was also present - albeit to a lesser degree - in term infants. This has not been a problem when vitamin K1 is given in normal therapeutic doses (0.5 - 1mg).
