HCA Study Finds 2.2% of Newborns Lack Vitamin K Records, Raising Bleeding Risk
Updated
Updated · Nature.com · Jul 10
HCA Study Finds 2.2% of Newborns Lack Vitamin K Records, Raising Bleeding Risk
2 articles · Updated · Nature.com · Jul 10
Summary
19,384 of 884,876 full-term newborns across 116 HCA hospitals from 2017 to 2022 had no documented prophylactic vitamin K, a study found.
That group showed higher risk of suspected vitamin K deficiency bleeding, while documented vitamin K was linked to sharply lower odds of coded VKDB and modestly lower odds of suspected cases.
The strongest predictors of missing documentation were gestational age, maternal parity, race and ethnicity, and insurance type; late-term birth, higher parity and noncommercial coverage were among factors tied to lower documentation odds.
Documentation gaps fell after a 2018 network scanning initiative, then reversed from late 2021, a trend the authors said aligns with rising parental refusal and points to a need for better documentation and targeted education.