Delaney KM, et al. - In 234 healthy neonates, researchers assessed the determinants of neonatal hemoglobin and evaluated the interrelations between hemoglobin, serum iron status indicators and serum iron regulatory hormones. For this observational study, they evaluated umbilical cord hemoglobin (Hb), serum ferritin (SF), erythropoietin (EPO), soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR), serum iron, hepcidin, vitamin B-12, folate, IL-6, and CRP measured in neonates born to adolescents or to women carrying multiples. In contrast to observations in older infants, there was a highly significant inverse association between Hb and SF, as well as positive associations between Hb and both sTfR and EPO, in umbilical cord blood from neonates born to adolescents or women carrying multiples. These findings, together with the review of the published literature, indicate the need to analyze the relationship between multiple parameters in order to assess iron and hematological status at birth.