blue baby

American  

noun

Pathology.

1. an infant born with cyanosis resulting from a congenital heart or lung defect.

---

blue baby British  

noun

1. a baby born with a bluish tinge to the skin because of lack of oxygen in the blood, esp caused by a congenital defect of the heart

---

Etymology

Origin of blue baby

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

blue baby

Two stuffed teddy bears were laid in a bright blue baby carrier.

From Reuters ● Mar. 18, 2022

Nitrates can cause so-called blue baby syndrome in which infants lose the ability to properly process oxygen into the bloodstream, giving their skin a bluish tint.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 4, 2021

I know what a heartrate below 90 means: It means a blue baby, a baby that needs to come out now.

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2019

In drinking water, they cause blue baby syndrome, which prevents infants from absorbing oxygen; in lakes, they fertilize neurotoxic algae; in farm country, they are a major source of suffocating smog.

From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2018

Where we had a table with a cloth and a vase for flowers and some chairs, they only kept a empty blue baby crib with a tired old white sheet over one corner.

From "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis