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VOLUME 1 , ISSUE 1 ( January-March, 2022 ) > List of Articles

REVIEW ARTICLE

Iron Deficiency in Newborn Infants: Global Rewards for Recognizing and Treating This Silent Malady

Timothy M Bahr, Diane M Ward

Keywords : Anemia, Erythropoiesis, Erythroferrone, Diagnosis, Hepcidin, Iron, Treatment

Citation Information : Bahr TM, Ward DM. Iron Deficiency in Newborn Infants: Global Rewards for Recognizing and Treating This Silent Malady. 2022; 1 (1):97-103.

DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-11002-0021

License: CC BY-NC 4.0

Published Online: 31-03-2022

Copyright Statement:  Copyright © 2022; The Author(s).


Abstract

Iron deficiency can exist at birth. Even if iron is sufficient at birth, deficiency can develop during the neonatal period, or during infancy, or during childhood. Iron deficiency can exist despite a normal hematocrit and a normal blood hemoglobin concentration, because anemia is a very late manifestation of iron deficiency. It is likely that adverse neurodevelopmental consequences occur during perinatal biochemical iron deficiency, despite a normal hematocrit and hemoglobin. Consequently, measuring those parameters is a very insensitive method for perinatal iron deficiency screening. This review focuses on potentially better practices for diagnosing perinatal iron deficiency, including recent advances in understanding the pathogenesis of this condition, and also on practical means of treatment, and on global rewards of so doing.

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