Study Finds Declining Use of Newborn Vitamin K Shot Linked to Increased Risk of Infant Bleeding

A large retrospective study by researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), published in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), found a concerning national trend: the percentage of newborns not receiving the routine intramuscular vitamin K injection at birth more than doubled from 3.1% in 2017 to 6.8% in 2025. This decline is linked to a higher risk of vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB), a potentially life-threatening disorder in infants. The study, which analyzed over 5.2 million hospital births, reinforces the long-standing recommendation for vitamin K administration to prevent severe bleeding, including intracranial hemorrhage.