Newborns Skipping Vitamin K Shot Face Bleeding Risk

Parents of newborns should know that infants without the shot had more than double the risk of brain bleeds in their first six months.

Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Babies

Screen-print poster illustration of an unlabeled glass vial and syringe on a pale surface, with a single red droplet falling above them. — Parents are being warned that newborns skipping the routine vitamin K shot after birth face more than double the risk of brain bleeds in their first six months. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Cases of vitamin K deficiency bleeding in infants rose nearly 350 percent since 2017, as a growing share of newborns skipped the routine vitamin K shot given after birth. Two studies published in JAMA and JAMA Pediatrics report the trend, which is relevant to parents of newborns across the United States.

Why it matters

The American Academy of Pediatrics has long recommended the vitamin K injection for every newborn, and it is not a vaccine. Researchers link the rise to growing mistrust in medicine and public doubt about childhood immunizations, which has led more parents to decline the shot.

Two JAMA-family studies covering more than 5 million and more than 11 million infants tracked the shot rate over time. Infants without the shot had more than double the risk of brain bleeds in their first six months, though the studies do not establish how much of that gap is caused by the missing shot alone.

The players

American Academy of Pediatrics

The national professional group of pediatricians that has recommended a vitamin K injection for every newborn for decades.

The details

Newborns are born with very low levels of vitamin K, which the body needs to make the proteins that allow blood to clot. Without the injection given soon after birth, some infants cannot clot normally, which can lead to serious bleeding, including bleeding in the brain. Vitamin K deficiency bleeding is rare but can be severe, and the single shot is the standard way to prevent it.

2017: Baseline year, when 3.1 percent of newborns went without the vitamin K shot.
2024 to 2025: Vitamin K deficiency bleeding cases roughly doubled.
2025: 6.8 percent of newborns went without the vitamin K shot.
November 5, 2026: Two studies were published in JAMA and JAMA Pediatrics.

Health Landscape

The universal newborn vitamin K injection is a long-standing preventive standard in U.S. pediatric care. The new data show that declining uptake of this low-cost, non-vaccine preventive measure is producing measurable increases in serious infant bleeding.

Parents of newborns should ask their pediatrician or birth provider about the vitamin K shot before delivery and understand why it is recommended. If you have questions or concerns about the shot, it is worth discussing them directly with your child's doctor.

The takeaway

A single vitamin K shot after birth is a standard, low-risk way to prevent serious infant bleeding, and its rising omission is a trend worth noticing. Ask your child's doctor about the shot and its role in your baby's first days of life.