Elsevier

Clinics in Perinatology

Volume 22, Issue 3, September 1995, Pages 609-625
Clinics in Perinatology

The Physiologic Impact of Anemia in the Neonate

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0095-5108(18)30271-9Get rights and content

The red blood cell plays a critical role in supplying oxygen throughout the body to meet the metabolic demands of the neo-nate. An inadequate number of red blood cells needed to supply oxygen in response to systemic demands constitutes the physio-logic impact of anemia, which in turn, can be reflected by a combination of attempted compensatory responses and the ulti-mate consequences of deficient oxygen delivery. These physiologic markers of anemia tend to correlate poorly with the absolute hematocrit or hemoglobin concentration and need to be considered in the evaluation and management of anemia in the neonate.

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