Iron metabolism parameters in newborns over the course of the neonatal period.

Iron metabolism was studied during the neonatal period in 21 preterm and 23 full-term newborns. Regularities of iron metabolism development characteri stic of this period were detected. In full-term newborns changes in the iro n transport fund were characterized by a decrease by the third week of life , while serum iron concentration, indicative of iron depot, tended to incre ase. The same regularities were observed in preterm newborns during the fir st week of rife, but by the end of the neonatal period the level of iron de creased and serum iron changes were delayed in comparison with those in ful l-term babies. Decreased iron transport in the serum in newborns directly c orrelated with the gestation age. The intensity of erythropoiesis during th e neonatal period was evaluated using plasma iron turnover index (PITI), su ggested by W. S. Beck in 1991. The detected inverse correlation between Hb level end PITI in full-ten newborns indicated a compensatory reaction of th e erythron to increased physiological destruction of erythrocytes in the ne onatal period. The intensity of erythropoiesis in preterm newborns did not depend on hemoglobin fever and directly correlated with it. No abnormalitie s in iron metabolism parameters were observed during the early neonatal per iod in children whose mothers suffered from anemia during gestation, in com parison with the control. Erythropoiesis values were unchanged.