US infant bleeding episodes jump as vitamin K refusals rise, two studies find
Researchers found newborns who missed the shot had a 47% higher risk of bleeding in the first six months, with brain bleeds and deaths also rising.
- New research published Thursday in JAMA Pediatrics from CHOP found newborn Vitamin K refusals more than doubled from 3.1% in 2017 to 6.8% in 2025.
- Pediatrician Thomas Patterson said misinformation and confusion regarding FDA black box warnings drive refusals, with some parents fearing the injection "creates trauma."
- Infants missing the injection face a 47% increased risk of bleeding events in their first six months of life, according to the study, with brain bleeding risks more than doubling without the shot.
- In Idaho, pediatrician Patterson has treated infants in the neonatal intensive care unit with brain bleeds after missing vitamin K, though such refusals were sporadic and rare prior to 2022.
- Vitamin K remains the standard of care since the early 1960s, yet doctors worry more infants will suffer complications as refusals rise. David Hill of the AAP urges parents to consult pediatricians about preventative benefits.
24 Articles
24 Articles
Life-threatening bleeding episodes in American infants have risen sharply since 2017 as parents increasingly refuse to give their newborns vitamin K. The trend coincides with a growing distrust of vaccines and other medical procedures in infancy, according to two new studies published Thursday. They are the first to show a direct link between refusing the injections and more frequent bleeding.
More Babies in US Are Dying After Parents Refuse Vitamin K Shots
Parents of newborns in the US are rejecting once-routine vitamin K shots at an increasing rate, and the number of babies who experience the potentially deadly bleeding that it’s designed to prevent is on the rise, a new study shows.
US infant bleeding episodes jump as vitamin K refusals rise, two studies find
Rates of life-threatening bleeding in US infants have risen sharply since 2017 as parents increasingly refuse protective newborn doses of vitamin K, a trend that coincides with a growing wave of mistrust toward vaccines and other newborn interventions, two studies published on Thursday found.
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