In Reply.—The comments by Dr Meberg provide an opportunity to amplify our discussion and to acknowledge that we had overlooked his article published in 1978.1 The possibility of selective stimulation of stem cells in the direction of erythropoiesis appealed to us, which is why we reported that thrombocytopenia and leukopenia were not uncommon and associated with increased NRBC counts in SGA infants. We reported in the "Results" section that "Contrary to expectation, SGA infants with marked increase in NRBC counts did not demonstrate high hematocrit values..."
As we mentioned, others have noted thrombocytopenia and neutropenia in SGA infants. Brazy et al2 noted a high incidence of thrombocytopenia and neutropenia in infants born to mothers with severe hypertension, many of whom (39%) were SGA. McIntosh et al3 described these findings in association with increased NRBC counts in extremely low-birth-weight SGA infants. They also postulated that marrow stem cells may