Controlled Trial of Phenobarbitone in Neonatal Jaundice

Relative roles of phototherapy and phenobarbitone in treatment of nonhaemolytic neonatal jaundice

“…Phenobarbitone therapy started after the appearance of jaundice seemed to be far less effective, though some studies (Yeung and Field, 1969;Stern et al, 1970;Sinniah, Tay, and Dugdale, 1971) have shown reduced need for exchange transfusions and lower plasma bilirubin levels, while others (Levin, McMullin, and Mobarak, 1970;Cunningham, Mace, and Peters, 1969) have found no significant difference.…”

The Influence of Phenobarbitone on Bilirubin Clearance

“…Our findings may contribute to explaining the failure of phenobarbitone action observed by some investigators if administration of phenobarbitone started in babies who already manifested definite jaundice [4,8]. We assume that maturation of the bilirubin excretory mechanism proceeds very quickly in term infants ( fig.…”

“…However, reports have appeared which cast doubt on this property of phenobarbitone [4,8]. The exact means by which phenobarbitone acts on bilirubin meta bolism in man still remains obscure [16].…”

Phenobarbitone in neonatal jaundice

“…A recent controlled trial (Levin, McMullin, and Mobarak, 1970) of phenobarbitone in the treatment of neonatal jaundice revealed a small but significant reduction of the mean bilirubin level of treated cases 24 hours after starting treatment. But as there were no significant differences in the mean bilirubin levels of the treated and untreated cases at 48 and 72 hours after starting treatment, and as there was no significant difference in the maximum recorded levels between the 2 groups, it was concluded by the authors that phenobarbitone had no place in the management of established neonatal jaundice.…”