The Effect of Prenatal and Postnatal Treatment with Intravenous Immunoglobulin on Severity of Neonatal Hemochromatosis: The Tale of Two Brothers (Case Report)

Abstract

Background Neonatal hemochromatosis (NH) is a rare condition that was the main reason for liver transplantation in infants. With the realization that NH results from the fetal complement-mediated liver injury, intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIG) were successfully introduced for the treatment. Case Presentation We present two cases of NH from the same family to illustrate the role of antenatal treatment with IVIG in alleviation and possible prevention of this serious morbidity. Conclusion A prenatal treatment and early postnatal administration of IVIG are effective ways to manage NH that help to reduce the severity of the symptoms, prevent liver failure, and avoid the need for liver transplantation.

Keywords

• neonatal hemochromatosis
• intravenous immunoglobulin
• prenatal treatment
• case report