Baby steps backward.

• Author: Mangu-Ward, Katherine
• Position: Vitamin K shot rejection - Vitamin K deficiency bleeding - Brief article

In May, The Tennessean reported that seven very young infants had been diagnosed with Vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB) in the preceding eight months at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt University.

VKDB is a very rare condition in the United States. That's because since 1961, American hospitals have administered Vitamin K shots to virtually all newborn babies. Vitamin K helps blood coagulate, which means brain and intestinal hemorrhaging can occur in very young infants who are deficient.

But as the anti-vaccine movement gains steam, parents are increasingly motivated to decline all shots--including this nonvaccine needle stick--over concerns about toxins or preservatives. Pediatricians...