Question

My newborn is 20 days old and has loose stools with blood. What could be the cause? I went to the outpatient clinic at Xiamen Hospital yesterday for a follow-up visit and vaccination, and the doctor prescribed ceftriaxone, but today the stools are still loose with a reddish color. We don’t know what to do.

Answer

A 20-day-old newborn experiencing loose stools with blood should first undergo a routine stool examination. If the routine stool examination shows blood but no inflammation, it may be due to an allergy to formula milk. If there is blood in the stool along with white cells or pus cells, it indicates an infection, which may require the use of antibiotics. The doctor has administered vitamin K1, but it should be considered whether there is a late-onset vitamin K deficiency. These are suggestions for the causes of newborn diarrhea with blood, hoping they can be of help to you. Wishing you health.