Introduction

Patient 1 was a 2078 g boy delivered in a regional hospital at 33 weeks gestation. His postnatal course was uncomplicated. His total bilirubin level was 13.1 mg/dl on the third day of life. Thereafter, measurement of total bilirubin was discontinued. Phototherapy was not performed. He was admitted to hospital at 48 days of age because of icterus. His total bilirubin level was 19.7 mg/dl. The hyperbilirubinaemia was rapidly improved with phototherapy.

Patient 2 was a 994 g boy delivered by caesarean section at 26 weeks gestation. Although artificial ventilation was necessary because of respiratory distress syndrome followed by chronic lung disease, his general condition was stable throughout the neonatal period. Prophylactic phototherapy was performed from birth. Peak total bilirubin level was 8.8 mg/dl on the seventh day of life, which slightly exceeded the recommended level for therapeutic phototherapy in Japan (8 mg/dl). It decreased soon after the phototherapy level was increased.

These patients had no family history of constitutional jaundice, . . . [Full text of this article]