Background:Rhesus (Rh) disease and extreme hyperbilirubinemia (EHB) result in neonatal mortality and long-term neurodevelopmental impairment, yet there are no estimates of their burden.Methods:Systematic reviews and meta-analyses were undertaken of national prevalence, mortality, and kernicterus due to Rh disease and EHB. We applied a compartmental model to estimate neonatal survivors and impairment cases for 2010.Results:Twenty-four million (18% of 134 million live births ≥32 wk gestational age from 184 countries; uncertainty range: 23–26 million) were at risk for neonatal hyperbilirubinemia-related adverse outcomes. Of these, 480,700 (0.36%) had either Rh disease (373,300; uncertainty range: 271,800–477,500) or developed EHB from other causes (107,400; uncertainty range: 57,000–131,000), with a 24% risk for death (114,100; uncertainty range: 59,700–172,000), 13% for kernicterus (75,400), and 11% for stillbirths. Three-quarters of mortality occurred in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Kernicterus with Rh disease ranged from 38, 28, 28, and 25/100,000 live births for Eastern Europe/Central Asian, sub-Saharan African, South Asian, and Latin American regions, respectively. More than 83% of survivors with kernicterus had one or more impairments.Conclusion:Failure to prevent Rh sensitization and manage neonatal hyperbilirubinemia results in 114,100 avoidable neonatal deaths and many children grow up with disabilities. Proven solutions remain underused, especially in low-income countries.

ABSTRACT. Objective. To determine whether early versus late treatment with porcine surfactant (Curosurf) reduces the requirement of mechanical ventilation in very preterm infants primarily supported by nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nasal CPAP).Design. Multicenter randomized, controlled trial.Patients. The study population comprised 60 infants <30 weeks' gestation with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) who had an arterial to alveolar oxygen tension ratio (a/APO 2 ) of 0.35 to 0.22.The cohort from which the study population was generated comprised 397 infants.Results. The need for mechanical ventilation or death within 7 days of age was reduced from 63% in the latetreated infants to 21% in early-treated infants. Increasing numbers of antenatal steroid doses also improved the outcome, especially in the early-treated infants. Six hours after randomization mean a/APO 2 rose to 0.48 in the earlytreated infants compared with 0.36 in the late-treated. The need of mechanical ventilation before discharge was reduced from 68% in the late-treated to 25% in the earlytreated infants.Conclusions. Nasal CPAP in combination with early treatment with Curosurf significantly improves oxygenation and reduces the subsequent need for mechanical ventilation in infants <30 weeks' gestational age with RDS. Pediatrics 1999;103(2). URL: http://www.pediatrics. org/cgi/content/full/103/2/e24; respiratory distress syndrome, pulmonary surfactant, Curosurf, nasal continuous positive airway pressure.ABBREVIATIONS. RDS, respiratory distress syndrome; nasal CPAP, nasal continuous positive airway pressure; a/APo 2 , arterial to alveolar oxygen tension ratio; Fio 2 , fraction of inspired oxygen; TcPo 2 , transcutaneous partial pressure of oxygen; TcPco 2 , transcutaneous partial pressure of carbon dioxide; PDA, patent ductus arteriosus; NEC, necrotizing enterocolitis; BPD, bronchopulmonary dysplasia; IVH, intraventricular hemorrhage; PVL, periventricular leucomalacia; ROP, retinopathy of prematurity. I n a randomized, controlled study we have shown that a single dose of surfactant (Curosurf, Chiesi Farmateutici, Parma, Italy) given by short-lasting intubation reduces the need for mechanical ventilation and improves oxygenation in infants with moderate to severe respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) treated with early nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nasal CPAP).1 Very few pulmonary and extrapulmonary complications were observed in these infants. However, some of the surfactanttreated infants supported by nasal CPAP developed apnea despite good oxygenation and needed mechanical ventilation for that reason. In the same trial, there seemed to be a higher need for ventilation among infants randomized relatively late after birth and in infants with relatively low birth weight. From the literature we know that surfactant given prophylactically, 2-4 or as early treatment to infants requiring mechanical ventilation, 5 is more effective than late rescue treatment.The present study was designed to test the hypothesis that infants Ͻ30 we...

In babies with moderate-to-severe respiratory distress syndrome treated with nasal continuous positive airway pressure, a single dose of surfactant reduced the need for subsequent mechanical ventilation.

An unselected series is presented of 17 infants born to epileptic mothers and exposed to sodium valproate during pregnancy. Nine infants had minor abnormalities and of these infants five also had major malformations, described as the 'fetal valproate syndrome'. The most frequent malformation was congenital heart disease. Nine of the infants had manifestations of withdrawal, such as irritability, jitteriness, abnormalities of tone, seizures, and feeding problems. Four of these infants had an unrelated hypoglycaemia. The frequency of withdrawal symptoms was significantly related to the dose of valproate given to the mothers in the third trimester, and there was a tendency for both the frequency of the minor abnormalities and the major malformations to be related to the valproate dosage in the first trimester.

Classical acute bilirubin encephalopathy (kernicterus) in term and near‐term infants had not been seen in Denmark for at least 20 y until 1994. From 1994 to 1998, however, six cases were diagnosed. Aetiology of the hyperbilirubinaemia was known in two infants; spherocytosis and galactosaemia, most likely known in two infants; possible A‐O blood type immunization, and unknown in two infants. However, one of these last‐mentioned infants had a gestational age of only 36 wk. The maximum plasma total bilirubin concentrations were 531–745 μmol/L. The increase in the number of cases of kernicterus was considered to have been caused by: (i) a decreased awareness of the pathological signs, (ii) a change in the assessment of the risk of bilirubin encephalopathy, (iii) early discharge of the infants from the maternity ward, (iv) so‐called breastfeeding‐associated jaundice, (v) demonstration of bilirubin being an antioxidant, and (vi) difficulty in estimating the degree of jaundice in certain groups of immigrants. Accordingly, for prevention: (a) Attempt to change the healthcare workers' understanding of the risk of bilirubin encephalopathy, (b) give further instructions, both orally and in writing, to mothers before discharge from the maternity ward, (c) be more liberal in giving infant formula supplements, (d) conduct home visits by the community nurse at an earlier stage, (e) follow authorized guidelines for phototherapy and exchange transfusion, (f) lower plasma bilirubin concentration limits as an indication for phototherapy and exchange transfusion, (g) screen all term and near‐term infants, and (h) measure the skin's yellow colour with a device that corrects for the skin's melanin content. Conclusions: Audit of the six cases presented indicates that measures are necessary in both the primary and secondary healthcare sectors if the risk of kernicterus is to be avoided. Screening may be considered, but in order to identify the problems it would first be reasonable to perform a larger prospective study in which audit is performed on all newborn infants, born at term and near‐term, who develop a plasma bilirubin concentration above the exchange transfusion limit.