Study of the effectiveness and accuracy of transcutaneous bilirubinometer in early diagnosis of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia in North India

Background: Neonatal hyperbilirubinemia affects 60% of full-term and 80% of premature infants leading to jaundice when serum bilirubin levels reach 5 mg/dl. As the red blood cells undergo the process of lysis, it increases the levels of serum bilirubin. The standard criteria to measure the levels of total serum bilirubin is via taking a blood sample but in contrast to it transcutaneous bilirubin measurement offers non-invasive, rapid results, typically within a minute, for assessing bilirubin levels. To determine the accuracy and reliability of transcutaneous bilirubinometer. Additionally, to investigate the capability of transcutaneous bilirubinometers in facilitating the early diagnosis of hyperbilirubinemia in preterm babies. Methods: For this study newly, registered neonates were assessed for hyperbilirubinemia, with MBJ20 bilirubinometer on the forehead within 24 hours of life and following up the patients for serum bilirubin levels. We took 400 neonates late preterm and term. The babies who had readings of 6 or more than 6 mg/dl, were further evaluated by total serum bilirubin levels. Results: In our study using the MBJ-20 transcutaneous bilirubinometer, the mean bilirubin concentration measured via TCB at the forehead was 8.75±2.27 mg/dl, compared to a mean TSB value of 12.28±2.33 mg/dl. A strong positive correlation was observed between TCB and TSB levels (r=0.86). Furthermore, the diagnostic performance of TCB was high, with an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 89.9%. The sensitivity of TCB forehead ranges between 80.0%–93.5% and the specificity is between 63.5%–79.4%. Conclusions: The data of our study arrived at a conclusion that the use of TCB is potentially safe and effective. Its measurements are reliable and accurate.