Volume 39, Issue 3 pp. 309-311

Development of jaundice in Korean neonates after Cesarean section

CHRISTEN S. LEE

CHRISTEN S. LEE

Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, USA

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HENDRIK J. VREMAN

HENDRIK J. VREMAN

Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, USA

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JUNG HWAN CHOI

JUNG HWAN CHOI

Department of Pediatrics, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

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CHONG KU YUN

CHONG KU YUN

Department of Pediatrics, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

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DAVID K. STEVENSON MD

Corresponding Author

DAVID K. STEVENSON MD

Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, USA

Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, 750 Welch Road, Suite 315, Palo Alto, CA 94305, USA.Search for more papers by this author
First published: 19 January 2011
Citations: 4

Abstract

The aim of the project was to determine the physiologic mechanisms of later- and higher-peak transitional plasma bilirubin levels in Korean infants. Blood carboxyhemoglobin, corrected for inhaled CO (COHbc), as an index of bilirubin production, and plasma total bilirubin levels in 40 healthy term Korean infants delivered by Cesarean section were measured throughout the first week of life. The COHbc levels were significantly higher in the Korean neonates than in previously studied Caucasian neonates. Moreover, COHbc levels decreased by 28% during the first 7 days of life from 0.85 ± 0.20 to 0.61 ± 0.34% (P < 0.025). This pattern parallels a 15% decrease in total hemoglobin from 181 ± 23 to 154 ± 53g/L (P < 0.05). In contrast, plasma bilirubin concentrations more than doubled from 80 ± 32 to 172 ± 48 μmol/L (4.7 ± 1.8 to 10.0 ± 2.8 mg/dL; P < 0.001), remaining unchanged between days 4 and 7. Both increased production and decreased elimination of bilirubin contribute to physiologic jaundice in Korean infants.

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