Re: B-12 and iron -MARY & TERESA!!

October 22, 2004

T,

I am in the medical field. I am a L & D RN. My hemoglobin got down

to 6 which means I lost HALF of my circulating blood volume. An 8

isn't much better. We give blood transfusions at my hospital for

women with hemoglobin's of 8!!!!

ALso, if your hemoglobin isn't at least 10, you won't get an

epidural for your delivery. (at my hospital).

I didn't see your original post, but wanted to let you know that a

pregnant woman's hempglobin should be between 11-14.

in Detroit.....you wrote : " Last week my hemoglobin was still

at 4.9...the OB isn't freaking out " I think you must be mistaken. A

hemoglobin of 4 is almost incompatible with life. You wouldn't have

any energy to sit and type at the keyboard. With a hemoglobin of 7 I

had to take a nap after every diaper I changed.

I hope you just have your levels mixed up or something. Most bodies

are made up of 12-16 " pints " of blood. In terms of yours being a 4,

that means you have lost 3/4's of your usual blood capacity.

Normal b12 levels are 200-1000. Mine was 181 and I felt crappy.

After 23 IV iron infusions, my hemoglobin is now 12.3 and my B12 is

over 2,000. Needless to say, I feel a whole lot better!!

If your hemoglobin isn't high enough, usually your platelet count

isn't high enough to get a spinal (or epidural for vaginal delivery)

for your c-section and they would have to put you to sleep to get the

baby out. I'd research to make certain what your level is. An 8 is

incredibly low (my lowest being a 6) but at a level of 4, I would

have been hospitalized and given 4-6 pints of blood.

Just wanting you to be certain before you go in for delivery. I hope

you both call and get all the information you need before D Day is

here!

Sheila RN L & D/NICU

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