الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract Hyperbilirubinemia is a common condition among preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Jaundice is observed during first week of life in approximately 60% of term neonates and 80 % of preterm neonates. Jaundice is easily diagnosable however require quick and on the spot treatment. If not treated properly, it leads to many complications. It occurs as a result of exaggerated neonatal red cell, hepatic, and gastrointestinal immaturity. Preterm infants are metabolically immature and at higher risk for bilirubin-induced neurologic dysfunction at lower bilirubin levels than their term counterparts. Total serum bilirubin (TSB) estimation is the gold standard for diagnosing hyperbilirubinemia however, it is an invasive method that requires drawing blood, and is also inconvenient because of technical difficulties in venous puncture, discomfort, pain, delay in results and parental stress; so, it is important to reducethe number of draws and minimize the amount of blood the newborn loses due to blood draws. Transcutaneous bilirubinometry (TcB) was originally developed as a potential replacement for invasive blood sampling. The use of a TcB meter in preterm infants can be a reliable noninvasive screening tool for hyperbilirubinemia, and it may be beneficial in decreasing painful stimuli and iatrogenic blood loss when used as an adjunct to TSB monitoring. So, this study aimed to determine and compare the diagnostic accuracy of transcutaneous bilirubin (TcB) measured at different body sites in neonates. To elucidate our aim ; this study was a prospective observational study was conducted on 131 participants (Neonates) at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Menoufia University Hospital and Al Helal Insurance Hospita, during the period study from March 2022 till January 2023. |