Journal of Neonatal Biology

Swallowed Maternal Blood Syndrome complicated by hemorrhagic disease of the newborn

Joint event on 9th World Summit on Neonatal Nursing and Health Care & 49th International conference on Prosthodontics & Restorative Dentistry

November 17, 2023 | Webinar

Jonnah Marie Yabut

St. Lukeâ??s Medical Center, Philippines

Accepted Abstracts: J Neonatal Biol

Abstract:

Aim: To describe a case of a term newborn with swallowed maternal blood syndrome overlapping with hemorrhagic disease of the new-born. This case report highlights the different causes of hematemesis and melena in term well newborns, the diagnostics that were utilized and the recommended management. Patients and methods: In these times where prenatal checkups and administration of prophylactic newborn medications are prioritized, neonatal hematemesis and melena have become uncommon for newborns. We report a case of a term newborn male delivered via cesarean section for placenta previa totalis and endocervical polyp, at a tertiary hospital presenting with hematemesis and melena at the first day of life. Results: Patient was initially treated as swallowed maternal blood syndrome after ruling out other causes. However, the patient also presented with prolonged prothrombin time (PT) and partial thromboplastin time (PTT) which was attributed to decreased circulating coagulation factors due to immature liver and decreased Vitamin K despite being given routine newborn prophylactic dose.Additional doses of Vitamin K and fresh frozen plasma transfusion were done then noted with improvement on the levels of bleeding parameters and resolution of bleeding episodes. Conclusion: Hematemesis or melena in newborns can pose a strain to the caregivers and may be as daunting to manage by the healthcare providers. Identification of the cause and classification whether it falls on the benign or severe spectrum is crucial for the course of management. By knowing the cause, we can avoid overuse of unnecessary diagnostics or treatments. Nevertheless, health-threatening conditions should not be overlooked. We reported a case of a term well newborn with swallowed maternal blood syndrome superimposed by hemorrhagic disease to provide information regarding the clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management. The dilemma was incommitting to a single diagnosis at the onset of the presentation of symptoms then having a different laboratory picture pointing to another disease. In swallowed maternal blood syndrome, the management is solely observation. Inversely, managing hemorrhagic disease of newborn involves giving of additional vitamin K doses and fresh frozen plasma transfusion. These were all done for the patient and other differentials were excluded as well.