Gestational Age-Specific Nomogram of Transcutaneous Bilirubin in First 120 h of Life for Term and Late Preterm Indian Neonates.

OBJECTIVE: To create a nomogram based on transcutaneous bilirubin values (TCB) in first week of life for term and late preterm (>34 weeks) neonates. METHODS AND DESIGN: Prospective longitudinal study. SETTING: Four tertiary-care teaching hospitals (one each in eastern and southern India, two in northern India) between February 2019 and March 2020. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 2492 term and late preterm (>34 weeks) neonates. INTERVENTION: Bilirubin was measured by transcutaneous bilirubinometer (Drager JM-105, Germany) in all neonates in pre-specified times of the day, 12 hourly every day since birth till discharge between 48 and 72 h, and data were recorded in epochs of 6 hourly intervals. Post-discharge, all neonates were called for review in next 48 h. OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary-TCB in first week of life. Secondary-factors having significant association with significant hyperbilirubinaemia requiring phototherapy. RESULTS: Total of 2492 neonates (males 1303 and female 1189), with a total of 14 162 TCB recordings were analysed and mean hourly bilirubin (TCB) at hourly intervals till 120 h and then daily bilirubin values on Days 6 and 7 were tabulated. We have constructed hour-specific bilirubin nomogram with percentiles as per gestational age in term and near-term Indian neonates till 120 h of life. Amongst the known risk factors, delayed cord clamping, primipara and breastfeeding jaundice had significant association for hyperbilirubinaemia needing phototherapy. CONCLUSIONS: We have created gestation-specific nomogram of TCB levels in 6 hourly intervals for the first 120 postnatal hours, obtained from a large predominantly breast fed healthy, term and near-term Indian neonates.

Morbidity Patterns of Late Preterm Babies Born Small for Gestation.

OBJECTIVE: To compare hypoglycemia and the other early neonatal morbidities (from birth till hospital discharge) of late preterm babies born small for gestational age (LP SGA) with their appropriate for age (LP AGA) counterparts. METHODS: LP SGA and LP AGA, as defined by Fenton charts, were prospectively followed-up to assess development of predefined morbidities, mortality and readmission rates at one month. All live inborn late preterm babies (340/7 to 366/7 weeks, n = 238) were included. RESULTS: LP SGA babies (n = 72) as compared to LP AGA babies (n = 166) were at higher risk for developing at least one predefined neonatal morbidity before hospital discharge [RR 1.93 (1.6-2.3; p < 0.001)]. These included hypoglycemia, hypothermia, respiratory morbidity needing support, jaundice needing treatment, feeding difficulties, birth asphyxia, and sepsis; besides, significant rates of readmissions and duration of hospital stay. CONCLUSIONS: Being born small for gestation age acts an additional jeopardizing factor in late preterm babies.

When alternative female Kangaroo care is provided by other immediate postpartum mothers, it reduces postprocedural pain in preterm babies more than swaddling.

AIM: Research on alternative female Kangaroo care (KC) has been hampered by high maternal refusal rates. We assessed the efficacy of Kangaroo mother care (KMC), alternative KC provided by other postpartum mothers and swaddling for postprocedural pain relief in preterm babies. METHODS: The study was carried out in a tertiary armed forces hospital, where mothers did not have support from other female relatives and other postpartum mothers agreed to act as alternative female KC providers. We exposed 51 stable preterm neonates, with a gestational age of 30-36 weeks, to KMC, alternative female KC and swaddling for 30 minutes before heel lancing. The outcome measures included the Preterm Infant Pain Profile (PIPP) scores at 30 seconds and the time taken for the heart rate to return to baseline. RESULTS: The mean PIPP scores were lower with KMC (10.59) and alternative female KC (11.24) than swaddling (12.96) and heart rate normalisation took 111, 117 and 149 seconds respectively. The p values were <0.001 for individual groups and outcomes. KMC fared better than alternative female KC for both pain (p = 0.045) and heart rate (p = 0.013). CONCLUSION: Providing KMC and alternative female KC before heel lancing resulted in better pain relief than swaddling.

A micro-costing model of neonatal intensive care from a tertiary Indian unit: feasibility and implications for insurance.

OBJECTIVE: To calculate and compare costs of neonatal intensive care by micro-costing and gross-costing methods. METHODS: The costs of resources of a tertiary care neonatal intensive care unit were estimated by the two methods to arrive at specific costs per diagnosis related categories for 33 neonates followed-up prospectively. RESULTS: Gross-costing as compared to micro-costing resulted in higher cost per bed (Rs 6315 vs. Rs 4969) and wide variations of costs (-34.8% to +13.4%). Intensity of interventions, relative stay in neonatal intensive care unit compared to the step-down nursery, and total length of hospital admission accounted for these variations. CONCLUSION: Estimates based on micro-costing arrived in this study may be used as a starting point in developing assumptions for insurance models covering neonatal intensive care.

Phenobarbitone in Rh hemolytic disease of the newborn: a randomized double-blinded placebo-controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of prophylactic oral phenobarbitone (PB) in neonates with Rh hemolytic disease of the newborn. STUDY DESIGN: In this double-blind randomized trial conducted in a tertiary care unit, we randomly allocated neonates with Rh hemolytic disease of the newborn born at or after 32 weeks' gestation to PB (10 mg/kg/day on day 1 followed by 5 mg/kg/day on days 2-5) (n = 23) or oral glucose (n = 21). The primary outcome was the duration of phototherapy. RESULTS: Baseline variables were comparable. There was no difference in the median duration of phototherapy [54 (range: 0-180) vs. 35 h (0-127); p = 0.39] and in the incidences of failure of phototherapy or significant rebounds of serum bilirubin. However, the proportion of infants with cholestasis was significantly lower in the PB group (0 vs. 19%; p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: PB does not reduce duration of phototherapy or its episodes. Its potential to reduce cholestasis needs validation in larger studies.