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Home › Articles › General Health › From Apgar to Vitamin K

From Apgar to Vitamin K

Tests and Procedures for Your Newborn Baby

By Melissa Granberry

Pages:  1  2  3  4  

Everything Is Accounted For
A physician will soon perform a complete examination of your new baby. "Counting fingers and toes, listening for heart murmurs and checking for hip dislocation are all part of the evaluation," says Dr. Kaye.

Your baby's weight, length and head circumference will also be taken and recorded shortly after birth. These statistics will be monitored at each well-baby doctor visit to make sure that the baby is growing at an acceptable rate.

Dr. Kaye reminds parents that most babies lose weight over the first several days. In fact, they may lose up to 10 percent of their body weight before they start to gain.

"We were a little concerned when our son, Riley, lost weight before leaving the hospital," says Dan Burnette, a father of three from Allen, Texas. "We took Riley to the pediatrician after a few days to make sure he was gaining weight and staying hydrated." Soon, Riley was back to his birth weight and growing into an energetic, healthy baby.

Drops and Shots
Your baby is about to experience eye drops and a shot – two procedures that will be dreaded for years to come.

The eye drops will contain silver nitrate or antibiotics, depending on your state's preference. Some practitioners are also using ointment in place of drops. These medicines prevent gonococcal or chlamydial infections and may cause puffiness around the baby's eyes.

The vitamin K injection enhances the clotting ability in baby's blood and prevents vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB), also called hemorrhagic disease of the newborn (HDN). This condition causes unexpected bleeding in a newborn's first week of life.


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