Congenital heart disease is the most common cause of infant death in the United States. In most children, serious heart disease presents during the first month of life. Thus, care…

Epidemiology, Risk Factors, and Presentation The fetus and the newborn are extremely susceptible to infections. This susceptibility stems from maternal risk factors, obstetrical complications, the postnatal environment, and the immature host…

Care of the high-risk neonate usually refers to care of the low-birth-weight infant or the sick term newborn. Although hyperbilirubinemia is certainly a matter of concern in these infants, the…

But that life may, in a manner of speaking, be restored to the animal, an opening must be attempted in the trunk of the trachea, into which a tube or…

When one considers the complexity of the pulmonary and hemodynamic changes occurring after delivery, it is surprising that the majority of infants make the transition from intrauterine to extrauterine life…

Chemistry Values Table C-1 Blood Chemistry Values in Premature Infants during the First 7 Weeks of Life (Birth Weight 1500-1750 g) Adapted from Thomas J, Reichelderfer T: Premature infants: analysis…

A physician’s knowledge of prenatal brain development in the context of maternal-placental health and disease greatly enhances the neurologic assessment of the newborn. Although acute neurologic signs after birth should…

Advances in neonatology, perinatology, and molecular genetics have defined new disease processes and raised new questions in the field of nephrology. For example, the advent of prenatal ultrasonography has created…

Red Blood Cells The great questions of the day are not decided by speeches and majority votes but by blood and iron. Otto von Bismarck, September 30, 1862 Fetal Erythropoiesis…

Technical advances and improvements in perinatal care have been mainly responsible for the improved survival of high-risk neonates ( Fig. 19-1 , Table 19-1 , and Appendix C). A major…