Anemia of prematurity epidemiology and demographics
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Asra Firdous, M.B.B.S.[2]
Overview
Anemia of prematurity is a common problem in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). It usually affects preterm and low birth weight infants born before 32-weeks of gestation. The risk of anemia of prematurity is inversely proportional to birth weight and gestational age at time of birth. It affects male and female infants equally with no racial predilection.
Incidence
- Anemia of prematurity is a common problem in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)
- Each week, in the United States, 10,000 new cases of premature births are reported[1]
- Extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants constitute about 6% of the premature births
- Approximately, 80-90% of ELBW infants require at least one blood transfusion due to anemia of prematurity
Age
- Anemia of prematurity is commonly seen in premature infants born before 32-weeks of gestation[2]
- The risk of anemia of prematurity is inversely proportional to weeks of gestation and weight at the time of birth
- Nearly, 50% of ELBW infants and infants born before 29 weeks of gestation require at least one blood transfusion during first two weeks of life. More than 80% of such infants receive additional blood transfusion before getting discharge from hospital[3]
Gender
The prevalence and incidence of anemia of prematurity do not vary by gender
Race
There is no racial predilection for anemia of prematurity
References
- ↑ Strauss RG (2010). “Anaemia of prematurity: pathophysiology and treatment”. Blood Rev. 24 (6): 221–5. doi:10.1016/j.blre.2010.08.001. PMC 2981681. PMID 20817366.
- ↑ “Anemia of Prematurity | Annual Review of Medicine”.
- ↑ Alan S, Arsan S (2015). “Prevention of the anaemia of prematurity”. Int J Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2 (3–4): 99–106. doi:10.1016/j.ijpam.2015.10.001. PMC 6372412. PMID 30805447.
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