Dermal Progression of Neonatal Jaundice of Newborn Under 35 Weeks of Gestational Age

Abstract

Aim:To determine the dermal progression of neonatal jaundice in newborns under 35 weeks of gestational age and those risk factors which affect dermal progression.Materials and Methods:We prospectively enrolled eighty-eight preterm newborns under 35 weeks of gestational age in neonatol intensive care unit of Dokuz Eylül University Hospital. It was a cross-sectional analytic case study. We measured capillary and transcutaneous bilirubin levels. Multiple sites of TcB measurement were performed.Results:We observed that there is no significant difference between capillary and transcutaneous bilirubin measurements on preterm newborns under 35 weeks of gestational age (pearson’s rho >75 and p0.05).Conclusion:Transcutaneous bilirubin measurements can be used for neonatal jaundice of newborns under 35 weeks of gestational age. However, we need further studies for comprehensive descriptions of preterm newborns’ jaundice progression.

Keywords

• dermal progression
• neonatal jaundice
• gestational age
• transcutaneous bilirubin measurements
• cephalocaudal progression