Table 4.24. Hyperviscosity / polycythemia syndrome.

A condition which most frequently develops shortly after birth, is characterized by a peripheral venous hematocrit above 69% (central venous Hct > 65%), involves sludging and stasis of blood flow, and often leads to a number of pathophysiological sequelae, morbidity and possibly mortality.
Incidence: 5% of all newborns (4% with polycythemia); 2.9% at Norfolk, VA, 4 - 5% at Denver, CO.
Associated conditions: transient tachypnea, respiratiory distress, increasepulmonary vascularity, congestive heart failure, cyanosis, cardiomegaly, renal thrombosis, jaundice, neurological abnormalities, necrotizing enterocolitis, thrombocytopenia, hyperbilirubinemia, persistent fetal (neonatal) circulation.