Anemia In An Infant In The First Year Of Life - Causes, Symptoms, Types And Treatment

2024 Author: Josephine Shorter | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-07 17:49

Anemia in an infant: what are the symptoms and how is it treated?

This disease occurs in all age categories, but most often its various forms are found in pediatrics. If in adults and children who are able to eat foods that stimulate the growth of hemoglobin (pomegranate, apples, liver), the situation can be corrected by correcting the diet, then the parents of an infant often do not know what to do.

Content:

• Anemia - what is it and why is it dangerous in newborns?
• Cause of anemia in an infant
• Symptoms of anemia in newborns
• Varieties of anemia in children under one year old
• The degree of anemia in infants
• Treatment of anemia in infants
• Effectiveness of therapy in infants
• Prevention of anemia in infants

Anemia - what is it and why is it dangerous in newborns?

With a low content of hemoglobin in the blood, which is a building material for red blood cells, anemia develops. Red blood cells, or erythrocytes, transport oxygen to all cells in the human body. Almost 98% of their composition is protein (globin) and iron.

The lack of this element in the body of newborns leads to a delay in the development of brain structures and a pronounced immunodeficiency. At the first signs of anemia, you should immediately contact a pediatrician, since at the initial stage, anemia is quite easy to correct. The average and severe degree of this disease requires careful implementation of the recommendations of the pediatrician.

Cause of anemia in an infant

In the first 6 months of life, the child uses the iron stores stored in his body during the prenatal period. With a lack of iron in the infant's diet, after this period, he develops anemia. The consequences are even more complicated if a deficiency of a valuable trace element occurs in the perinatal period.

The reasons for the lack of iron in the fetus:

• Deficiency of copper, folic acid, vitamin B ₁₂ in the body of a pregnant woman, additional medication is required;
• Bleeding during pregnancy;
• Iron deficiency in the body of a woman expecting a child, to replenish it, you need to adjust the diet, take drugs with a high content of a trace element;
• Poor diet of a pregnant woman;
• Placental abnormalities;
• Trauma suffered during pregnancy;
• Premature birth;
• Delayed cord ligation;
• Rhesus conflict;
• Infections suffered by a woman during pregnancy.

That is why, for timely monitoring of the health of a pregnant woman and a fetus, it is important to register in a antenatal clinic on time. It is advisable to do this until the gestation period has reached 12 weeks. Working with your gynecologist is very important throughout the gestational period.

What can cause acquired anemia in an infant:

• Use of adapted milk formula;
• Introduction to the diet of whole cow's milk;
• Bleeding due to an infectious disease;
• Gastrointestinal pathology;
• Weighed down heredity;
• Lead intoxication;
• Upper respiratory tract infections;
• Violations of the process of blood formation;
• Disturbed diet of a nursing mother.

All of the above reasons change the shape of red blood cells and their color, the blood cells become lighter, acquire an oval shape.

Symptoms of anemia in newborns

In infants, anemia may not show any obvious signs. Only the results of a blood test can speak about the disease, when the hemoglobin content in them is below 110 units.

Symptoms of anemia, noticeable to the parents of the baby:

• Restless sleep, daytime sleepiness;
• Lethargy and moodiness;
• Desire to eat inedible objects (clay, sand, earth);
• Complete lack of appetite;
• Hair loss, poor growth;
• Spitting up for no reason;
• Cracked lips;
• Frequent colds;
• Dyspeptic manifestations, disruption of the gastrointestinal tract;
• Stomatitis;
• Brittle nails;
• Excessive sweating.

If a child develops these symptoms, the doctor will order a complete blood count. The norm of hemoglobin in a newborn child is 200 g / l, in a child up to six months - 100 g / l, over 6 months - 140 g / l.

If the child has a noticeable lag from the norm in the analysis results, you should consult a pediatrician.

Varieties of anemia in children under one year old

The slowed down production of red blood cells or the cessation of their production causes anemia in the infant.

Types of anemia in infants:

• Anemia of premature babies - is recorded in every child who appears prematurely, is determined in the hospital;
• Iron deficiency, or hypochromic - is fixed in 80% of all cases;
• Hemolytic - occurs when the Rh-conflict between mother and child, as well as when a pregnant woman is infected with toxoplasmosis, rubella, herpes;
• Alimentary - is formed against the background of a monotonous diet, poor in vitamins and microelements;
• Anemia, as a result of infection, can be a symptom of pathology;
• Autoimmune - irregular red blood cells with this type of anemia lead to oxygen starvation;
• Yaksha-gayem anemia - characterized by an increase in the liver, hyperthermia, pale skin, the appearance of shortness of breath and heart murmurs, a sharp decrease in hemoglobin, although the number of red blood cells remains within normal limits;
• Hypoplastic anemia, which has a high percentage of lethal outcomes, and hemoblastosis (leukemia) - occurs due to suppression of the activity of erythrocytes by leukocytes due to impaired immunity, or due to impaired synthesis of erythrocytes.

The degree of anemia in infants

The severity of anemic condition in an infant is divided according to the hemoglobin level and the concentration of red blood cells:

• Easy degree. Laboratory indicators: erythrocytes - 3 million / l, hemoglobin - 90-110 g / l. The condition does not require treatment, it is corrected by introducing a more varied diet into the diet of a lactating woman. In transient anemia, the pediatrician monitors the child's condition and prescribes special medications for him.
• Average degree. Laboratory indicators: erythrocytes - 2.5 - 3 million / l, hemoglobin - 70-90 g / l. With this degree of anemia, the child lags behind in his physical and mental development from the age norm, the work of the gastrointestinal tract and the cardiovascular system is disrupted. The child feels dizzy, suffers from shortness of breath, often suffers from colds and infectious diseases, children with this degree of anemia are usually lethargic and weak. This degree of pathology most often requires medical supervision in a hospital setting, in treatment with iron preparations.
• Severe degree. Laboratory indicators: erythrocytes - less than 2.5 million / l, hemoglobin - below 70 g / l. In infants with this degree of anemia, kidney and intestines, the hematopoietic system, the respiratory and circulatory systems are affected, and dystrophy appears.

Treatment of anemia in infants

Anemia therapy is carried out only after a thorough diagnosis, identifying the type and form of the disease. If newborns or infants are diagnosed with grade 1 iron deficiency anemia, correction of this condition can be carried out outside the hospital, only when changes are made to the baby's diet and daily routine.

Complex treatment - necessary measures:

• Impact on the causes of anemia (replacement of milk formula, correction of the mother's diet).
• Taking vitamins and preparations with a high iron content, for better absorption, they are given between feedings, possibly mixed with fruit juice, although they are already produced in the form of a syrup.
• Making changes in the diet, following a diet that includes buckwheat porridge, egg yolk, mashed apples, liver, meat, cheese, fruit juices, vegetable purees, refusal from semolina, rice groats, oatmeal.
• Correction of the daily routine: long walks, massage, games with elements of physical education, gymnastics, additional sleep.

The minimum duration of treatment for anemia in an infant is 1 month or more.

When a child is born with hypoxia, prematurely, with large blood loss, he is injected with a mass with an increased content of erythrocytes (30%).

Therapy for anemia of the 2nd degree: the appointment of drugs with a high iron content (Aktiferrin, Maltofer, Hemoferon), selected in accordance with the individual characteristics and needs of the baby. Most often they are available in the form of oil and water-soluble drops.

Therapy for grade 3 anemia: when the hemoglobin level in an infant is below 70 g / l, an urgent blood transfusion is performed in a hospital setting.

If breastfeeding is maintained, the baby must be given breast milk rich in easily digestible iron on demand.

Effectiveness of therapy in infants

Therapy for anemia in infants should be accompanied by a gentle regimen:

• Frequent walks in the fresh air;
• Temporary refusal to attend preschool rooms;
• Limitation of physical activity;
• Correction of the diet, early introduction of complementary foods (earlier by 2-4 weeks).

After correction of these factors, medication is started. After 1-2 weeks of complex treatment, with full compliance with all conditions, an increase in hemoglobin level occurs, an increase in reticulocytes. To a normal state, hemoglobin can rise within 3-5 weeks, and even after that, treatment should continue for at least 3 months.

The reason for the lack of positive dynamics after 3-4 weeks of treatment:

• Incorrectly calculated dosage of an iron-containing drug;
• History of neoplasms and inflammation;
• Infection with parasites;
• Misdiagnosis;
• Lack of vitamin B ₁₂.

After analyzing the causes, the pediatrician corrects the therapy of the disease.

Low hemoglobin - School of Dr. Komarovsky:

Prevention of anemia in infants

To prevent anemia in newborns and infants, a set of preventive measures has been developed in pediatrics:

• A pregnant woman should eat right, observe the daily regimen, introduce iron-rich foods into the diet, take vitamins.
• Premature infants and at-risk babies should take iron supplements.
• It is important that the nutrition of a nursing mother is balanced.
• It is necessary to introduce the necessary products into the children's diet in a timely manner, complementary foods on demand.
• Exact adherence to the daily routine is required.
• It is important to visit a pediatrician in a timely manner, regularly take blood tests for hemoglobin.

Anemia is often diagnosed in infants. When making such a diagnosis or when independently identifying the symptoms of pathology, it is important for the parents of the baby to seek medical help in a timely manner. Timely diagnostics and treatment will help cure anemia without consequences for the child.

The author of the article: Sokolova Praskovya Fedorovna | Pediatrician

Education: Diploma in the specialty "General Medicine" received at the Volgograd State Medical University. A specialist certificate was immediately received in 2014.