ANEMIA
CONTENT
What is anemia
How do you know if my baby has anemia
Why do babies get anemia
How do we treat anemia
WHAT IS ANEMIA
- Anemia is having too few red blood cells.
- Red blood cells are the cells that carry oxygen throughout the body.
HOW DO YOU KNOW IF MY BABY HAS ANEMIA
1.Two (2) tests—hemoglobin (heme-a-glow-bin) and hematocrit (he-mat-a-crit)—are used to determine the number of red blood cells in the blood.
2.The number of the red blood cells is reported as the hemoglobin or the hematocrit.
3.The value (number) for the hematocrit is usually about 3 times larger than the hemoglobin (e.g.: the hemoglobin is 12, the hematocrit is 36).
4.We do these tests often to monitor the values.
WHY DO BABIES GET ANEMIA
1.The most common reason for anemia in premature babies is the amount of blood taken from the baby for tests to help the doctor manage the baby’s care.
- Newborn infants make only a few new red blood cells in the 1st weeks of life to replace any blood that is taken and the baby can develop anemia
- The doctor may order a blood test called a Reticulocyte Count (re-tick-u-low-sight)—It measures the percent (%) of newly made red blood cells.
2.Another reason that anemia happens in babies is because the red blood cells in babies have a shorter life span that the red blood cells in adults. This may be worse if the baby’s blood type is different from the mother’s blood type.
3.As your baby grows, he will begin to make red blood cells quicker and the red blood cells will have a longer life span.
HOW DO WE TREAT ANEMIA
1.Mild anemia may not need treatment if the number of red blood cells is enough to carry oxygen to meet your baby’s needs.
2.Other times, if the red blood cells are too low to meet your baby’s needs we will replace the red blood cells with a blood transfusion.
3.Sometimes the doctor will order iron supplements for your baby; iron helps the body make new red blood cells. Iron can be part of the baby’s formula, added to vitamins or given as iron drops. The doctor will talk with you about this.
- However, giving iron takes times to correct the anemia. If your baby is small or sick they may still need a blood transfusion.
4.Occasionally the doctor will order a drug called Erythropoietin (e-rith-row-poe-eatin) to be given along with iron supplements.
a.Erythropoietin is a medication (drug) that stimulates the bone marrow to make red blood cells faster
b.This medication is given by injection
c.Usually we give Erythropoietin if your baby was less than 32 weeks’ gestation at birth, if his/her hematocrit is less than 29% and/or if his/her reticulocyte (re-tick-u-low-site) count is less than 5%
d.Also it is sometimes ordered if the doctor thinks your baby may need a blood transfusion in the next week
e.The doctors and/or nurse practitioners will talk with you about this medication. Please don’t hesitate to ask any questions you may have.
Reviewed/Revised: 02/03…..08/11
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