19. SOMETIMES YOU JUST HAVE TO USE YOUR COMMON SENSE
I’m a doctor of pharmacy and sometimes it can confuse people that may think I’m a medical doctor. Anyway, this story happened a few weeks ago.
Had OB nurse call me to talk to a family about vitamin K shots. These are given to newborns to prevent hemorrhages and excess bleeding.
Now there is some controversy regarding the practice of giving vitamin K and is kinda similar to the anti-vax movement. That’s not why the parents were concerned; they read online the shot contains benzyl alcohol.
Benzyl alcohol is not uncommon to have in some injections because it inhibits microbial growth to keep it sterile. It is very dangerous for newborns, and is never in injections meant for them. The parents didn’t know that part. They were upset because they thought that the alcohol is equivalent to giving the baby a drink.
The parents were in their 40’s.
PhairPharmer