Neonatal uterine bleeding as a biomarker for reproductive disorders during adolescence: a worldwide call for systematic registration by nurse midwife

Patrick Puttemans, Giuseppe Benagiano, Caroline Gargett, Caroline E. Gargett, Roberto Romero, Sun‐Wei Guo, Sun-Wei Guo, Ivo Brosens, Jan J. Brosens
The journal of maternal-fetal & neonatal medicine : the official journal of the European Association of Perinatal Medicine, the Federation of Asia and Oceania Perinatal Societies, the International Society of Perinatal Obstetricians · 2016 · vol. 30(12) , pp. 1434–1436 · doi:10.1080/14767058.2016.1216540 · PMID:27454348 · PMC5505234 · W2496552225
review OA: closed CC0 ⤵ 27 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-08 ⓘ

Neonatal uterine bleeding, occurring in about 5% of newborns, is proposed as a biomarker for adolescent reproductive disorders like endometriosis and deep placentation issues due to its link with fetal distress and endometrial stem cell activity.

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Abstract

Neonatal uterine bleeding (NUB) occurs in approximately 5% of newborns and is generally considered to be of little clinical significance. However, the real clinical importance of this condition and its long-term implications remain to be determined. The reason why NUB is rare despite high circulating levels of progesterone can be attributed to a progesterone resistance present in a majority of neonates. Recent work indicates that NUB represents a significant biomarker for events that can occur later-on during adolescence. Indeed, clinical studies have shown that "neonatal menstruation" constitutes a sign of fetal distress during late pregnancy, reflecting a stage of endometrium development that may subsequently have an impact on the reproductive life of the adolescent and the young adult. Via retrograde flow, NUB can cause endometrial stem/progenitor cells to arrive into the pelvic cavity and survive there, dormant underneath the peritoneal surface, until menarche activates them. Indeed, there is both clinical and epidemiological evidence of a link between NUB and adolescent endometriosis. In addition, if progesterone resistance persists till the onset of menarche, in case of an early teen pregnancy, it can result in a disorder of deep placentation. Therefore, we propose that NUB should be carefully recorded so that prospective studies can examine its links with reproductive disorders in adolescence and beyond.

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Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Uterine Hemorrhage Adolescent Age of Onset Biomarkers Endometriosis Endometrium Endometrium Endometrium Female Humans Infant, Newborn Nurse Midwives Uterine Diseases Uterine Diseases Uterine Hemorrhage

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Cited by (27)

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