Serum Zinc Alteration in full term Neonate with Hyperbilirubinemia before and after Phototherapy

Abstract

Hyperbilirubinaemia is one of the commonest causes of admission to hospital in neonatal period. The final product of heme protein catabolism is an unconjugated bilirubin. One of the factors that affect the severity and incidence of jaundice is the level of serum zinc. This study aimed to evaluate serum zinc level in neonatal hyperbilirubinemia before and after phototherapyMethods:The study was conducted on two groups: Study group included 50 neonates hahyperbilirubinemia. Control group included 50 neonates. All groups were subjected to Full history, Full examination and Laboratory Investigations included:Serum zinc level before and (12-24hrs) after phototherapy. Total serum billirubin and direct.Results:patient group was significantly associated with higher TSB when compared to control group.Zinc level was significantly lower in cases when compared to control group. phototherapy in neonates with severe hyperbilirubinemia was associated with a significant increase in the serum zinc levels.all studied cases were stratified according to basal TSB level into moderate hyperbilirubinemia (TSB<18 mg/dL) and severe hyperbilirubinemia (TSB≥18 mg/dL). In both subgroups, zinc level increased significantly after phototherapy. Basal serum zinc level showed significant negative correlation with TSB. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of zinc level was conducted for discrimination between moderate and severe hyperbilirubinemia cases.Fair AUC was found (AUC = 0.760)at best cut of value of baseline zinc (=84.5ug/dl), sensitivity was 82.4%, specificity was 66.7%, Conclusion:Phototherapy by reducing the bilirubin level causes an increase in the serum zinc level .