Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

Flip

Original poster

vitamin k. drops or injection??

19 replies

Bondy83 · 30/01/2015 21:46

Just wondering what others have decided on. Midwife asked me before if I'd decided if the baby is to have the vitamin k by drops or injection, I know my other 2 children will of had it but can't remember if it was by drops or injection. What has everyone else decided on and why?

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

dementedpixie · 30/01/2015 21:47

I chose injection for both of mine as it was done in one go and no follow up doses were needed

Cakealicious · 30/01/2015 21:52

We chose the injection as the drops are multiple doses and you have to make sure they get all of it. My DS didn't notice it being done, he was asleep.

coley170 · 31/01/2015 08:23

Injection is easier x

SunshinePickle · 31/01/2015 08:24

I work with newborns and nearly all of them have the injection.

Dollyemi · 31/01/2015 08:25

Injection for my dd, didn't want to have to revisit the hospital for the drops at different stages.

monkey2014 · 31/01/2015 08:35

I did some research about it and we decided to go for the injection. This is what I found but I have no medical training whatsoever so take with a pinch of salt :)

I found a lot of people didn't want the injection because in the 1990s a study linked it to childhood cancers, but this has been shown to not be true (they say it can't be proven in a lab for definite because obviously you can't do a study saying 'your child wIll have the injection so we can see if they get cancer', but all other studies showed no link). Generally most of the info online about this is non-medical experts and I found it quite shocking how many websites there are where people have cherry picked what evidence they discussed!

Secondly some people don't like the idea of giving a newborn an injection because it's painful.

Thirdly some people/sites talk about a risk of anaphylaxis - in theory it's a risk because I suppose you can react to any medicine, but there's only one recorded case of anaphylaxis after vit k injection which was in Turkey in 2013 (as far as I can find).

It is suggested the injection might be more effective than the drops because it goes into a muscle -again don't have medical training but from what I read it seemed that this means it is slower release/the body can take what it needs over time.

The possible downside of drops is that it's more appointments / things to remember and that because it's by mouth you have to be sure baby didn't just dribble it out :)

I didn't keep the links to what I read but it was all through googling - you can read the original studies online if you want to.

ch1134 · 31/01/2015 09:06

I chose drops but ended up having the injection. A friend went for drops and said the baby hated it, a bit traumatic and may have spat them out anyway. I still chose drops as I didn't like the idea of an injection when they're so new. But in the end I had a traumatic birth, they didn't read the notes and he was given the injection. I couldn't have cared less right then. They hardly notice after the trauma of being born.

Addictedtocustardcreams · 31/01/2015 09:12

DD had the injection & I will do the same this time around. Everything monkey2014 has said & I am medical! Also the point is to prevent blood clotting problems & the potential for a bleed in the brain. As far as I can see the quicker you do this the better (I.e. A single injection immediately after birth will have the baby covered sooner than oral doses over a few days)

bagofsnakes · 31/01/2015 09:24

monkey great post! Very helpful for me to read that I as I thought I was going to go for the oral dose this time (despite DC1 having the injection) but think I'll have DC2 have the injection after reading that.

blowinahoolie · 31/01/2015 13:20

Injection for both of mine as it was done straight away and that was it. Didn't have to think about it again.

monkey2014 · 31/01/2015 22:37

Glad to have helped :) I was thinking oral as well until I read the studies

BreeVDKamp · 31/01/2015 22:38

Injection! :)

Zsazsabinks · 01/02/2015 13:20

Injection, done and dusted in a second. Never have to think about it again.

Baby's just had its head squeezed every five minutes for hours on end, to such a point that its skull has changed shape, then been pushed out of a hole that's usually the size of a cashew nut. I doubt it's going to give a shit about the minor scratch-like inconvenience of a jag (or Jab)!

Zsazsabinks · 01/02/2015 13:21

(Cashew nut/walnut/tennis ball...YKWIM!)

ChatEnOeuf · 01/02/2015 13:27

Injection, completely happy with the choice and will do the same this time around. All the preterms I look after get the injection too.

MoominKoalaAndMiniMoom · 01/02/2015 13:37

Injection, very happy, will do it every time.

My mum's sister died of Vit K deficiency.

PenguinsandtheTantrumofDoom · 01/02/2015 13:41

injection. All done, no follow up.

LuckyLopez · 01/02/2015 14:17

A lone person who chose the drops for all three.

We were given the doses to administer ourselves at the appropriate time. Personal preference as part of my home births.

43percentburnt · 01/02/2015 22:40

Drops. Was a nightmare, they kept forgetting to bring them out. The final dose involved me making 7 phone calls, involving 4 midwives and 1 gp, they turned up twice with no drops and once telling me she wasn't allowed to administer it! Was rather hilarious with hind sight (not at the time), guess not many people have drops...

Flip

Swipe left for the next trending thread