Neonatal Coagulation Disorder: Diagnostic Approaches for Bleeding Neonates

ABSTRACT

All newborn infants with clinically significant bleeding should be evaluated for a hemostatic deficit. Medical history should include the following data familial bleeding disorders, maternal illness and medication, age of bleeding onset, and prophylactic administration of vitamin K. The first essential step for evaluating bleeding neonates is determining whether the baby is sick or well. The physician should also evaluate the extent of the bleeding, features of bleeding lesions, and other abnormal findings from the physical examination. Skeletal anomalies may provide diagnostic clues. Depending on the clinical features and results of screening tests, other tests including coagulation factors may be useful for determining the diagnosis. All laboratory results must be considered in the context of age-related reference values. The platelet function analyzer provides a promising alternative to bleeding time. Fibrin degradation products and D-dimers are used for screening and specially testing fibrinolytic activity, respectively. The Apt test may help to rule out factors derived from maternal blood. Radiologic imaging studies are important because asymptomatic intracranial hemorrhages are common in neonates.