UN World Blood Donor Day – Special Research Topic: Precision Transfusion Strategies in Neonatal Care

Observed annually on 14 June, World Blood Donor Day recognizes the life-saving contributions of voluntary blood donors and highlights the critical importance of ensuring a safe and adequate blood supply worldwide. In accordance with and in recognition of this global initiative, this Research Topic aims to highlight advances in transfusion practices that directly impact one of the most vulnerable patient populations—newborns requiring care in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Access to safe donor blood remains essential in neonatal medicine, where premature and critically ill infants frequently depend on transfusion support to survive and recover from complex medical conditions.Blood transfusion remains a cornerstone of neonatal care for conditions such as anemia of prematurity, severe infections, and complications related to surgery or critical illness. However, traditional transfusion practices have often relied on generalized thresholds and population-based guidelines, which may not fully reflect the unique physiological variability of individual neonates. As survival rates among extremely preterm infants continue to improve, there is increasing recognition of the need for more precise, individualized approaches to transfusion decision-making.Recent advances in clinical research, biomarker discovery, and data-driven medicine are transforming neonatal transfusion practices. Precision medicine approaches—including improved transfusion thresholds, risk stratification models, and machine learning–supported clinical decision tools—offer new opportunities to tailor transfusion strategies to the specific needs of each patient while minimizing unnecessary exposure to donor blood products. At the same time, important challenges remain, including optimizing transfusion thresholds for red blood cells, platelets, and plasma; addressing transfusion-related complications; and ensuring equitable access to safe blood products globally.This Research Topic aims to bring together clinicians, researchers, and transfusion medicine experts to explore innovative and evidence-based strategies that improve transfusion practices and outcomes in neonatal care. By integrating advances in clinical research, technology, and global health perspectives, the collection seeks to foster progress toward safer, more effective, and more equitable transfusion medicine for newborns.We welcome submissions addressing topics including, but not limited to:• Evidence-based transfusion thresholds in neonates• Anemia of prematurity and innovative transfusion management approaches• Platelet and plasma transfusion strategies in neonatal care• Biomarkers and clinical decision-support tools for neonatal transfusion practices• Safety, quality, and supply challenges of blood products used in neonates• Transfusion-related complications and risk mitigation strategies• Short- and long-term outcomes of neonatal transfusion practices• Global disparities in access to safe blood for neonatal care• Implementation strategies, policy perspectives, and educational initiatives aimed at improving neonatal transfusion medicine Topic editors: Domenico Umberto De Rose, Pierpaolo Berti Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/82028/un-world-blood-donor-day---special-research-topic-precision-transfusion-strategies-in-neonatal-care