CORRELATION BETWEEN TOTAL SERUM BILIRUBIN LEVELS AND TRANSCUTANEOUS BILIRUBINOMETER VALUES IN NEONATAL JAUNDICE

Abstract

Background: Jaundice in newborns is a prevalent postnatal complication, typically benign in nature. To assess neonatal jaundice, the development of non-invasive techniques, such as the transcutaneous bilirubinometer, has proven instrumental. This study focuses on evaluating neonatal bilirubin levels using transcutaneous bilirubin (TcB) meters, which employ a non-invasive approach by measuring light transmission through the skin.

Objective: The objective of this research is to conduct a comparative analysis between transcutaneous bilirubin levels in neonates and their corresponding total blood bilirubin levels.

Method: A cross- sectional study was conducted over the course of six months in the neonatal unit at Bahria International Hospital in Lahore. Systematic random sampling was used to recruit a total of 100 instances of newborn jaundice. Babies' demographic information was collected after they were born. The transcutaneous bilirubinometer (TCB) JM-105 was used to measure their bilirubin levels. Bilirubin levels in the serum were measured and documented simultaneously. The results of the two tests were compared to determine the degree of correlation between them.

Results: Out of 100 neonates, 61(61%) were male. For all weight ranges mean TCB values significantly correlated with mean serum bilirubin level (p<0.001) with correlation coefficient 0.778.

Conclusion: In newborns, total serum bilirubin (TSB) levels are highly associated with transcutaneous bilirubin (TcB) levels. Therefore, TcB can be utilized to direct care for these infants.