Faculty, Staff and Student Publications
Language
English
Publication Date
6-1-2023
Journal
Neoreviews
DOI
10.1542/neo.24-6-e370
PMID
37258497
PMCID
PMC10865726
PubMedCentral® Posted Date
February 2024
PubMedCentral® Full Text Version
Author MSS
Abstract
Anemia of prematurity affects the majority of preterm infants, particularly extremely low birthweight infants. Anemia of prematurity arises from both innate and iatrogenic causes and results in more than 80% of extremely preterm infants receiving red blood cell transfusions during the first month after birth. Multiple randomized controlled trials were conducted to evaluate the effect of using lower versus higher transfusion thresholds based on hemoglobin levels. These trials showed no difference in the primary outcome of neurodevelopmental impairment at 2 years of age between lower and higher thresholds. However, some uncertainties about transfusion thresholds remain. This review elaborates the following: 1) the etiology, prevention, and treatment of anemia of prematurity with a focus on red blood cell transfusions, 2) the history of randomized controlled trials on the treatment of anemia of prematurity, and 3) limitations of the evidence and remaining questions about thresholds for red blood cell transfusions in preterm infants.
Keywords
Humans, Infant, Newborn, Anemia, Anemia, Neonatal, Erythrocyte Transfusion, Erythropoietin, Infant, Extremely Low Birth Weight, Infant, Extremely Premature, Retinopathy of Prematurity
Published Open-Access
yes
Recommended Citation
Lindsay F Holzapfel, Matthew A Rysavy, and Edward F Bell, "Red Blood Cell Transfusion Thresholds For Anemia of Prematurity" (2023). Faculty, Staff and Student Publications. 2215.
https://digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu/uthmed_docs/2215