This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (16)
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Maisels, M. J.
Right arrow Articles by Huang, R.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Maisels, M. J.
Right arrow Articles by Huang, R.
Related Collections
Right arrow Premature & Newborn
PEDIATRICS Vol. 113 No. 6 June 2004, pp. 1628-1635

Evaluation of a New Transcutaneous Bilirubinometer

M. Jeffrey Maisels, MB, BCh*, Enrique M. Ostrea, Jr, MD{ddagger}, Suzanne Touch, MD§, Sarah E. Clune, DO||, Eugene Cepeda, MD{ddagger}, Elizabeth Kring, RN*, Karin Gracey, RN, MSN{ddagger}, Cheryl Jackson, RN, MSN{ddagger}, Deborah Talbot, RN, MSN{ddagger} and Raywin Huang, PhD

* Department of Pediatrics, William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, Michigan
{ddagger} Division of Neonatology, Hutzel Hospital, Detroit, Michigan
§ Division of Neonatology, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
|| West Bloomfield, Michigan
Research Institute, William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, Michigan

Objective. The objective of this study was to evaluate the Minolta/Hill-Rom Air-Shields Transcutaneous Jaundice Meter model JM-103.

Methods. We studied a convenience sample of 849 newborns ≥35 weeks of gestation in 3 hospitals. These infants had total serum bilirubin (TSB) levels measured on clinical indication, and transcutaneous bilirubin (TcB) levels were obtained within 1 hour of the TSB levels. The population was 59.2% white, 29.8% black, 4.5% East Asian, 3.8% Middle Eastern, 1.6% Indian/Pakistani, and 1.1% Hispanic.

Results. There was a close correlation between TSB and TcB values in all of the population groups: white (n = 503, r = .949); black (n = 253, r = .822); and East Asian, Indian/Pakistani, and Hispanic (n = 93, r = .926). In the black population, the correlation was less close than in the other groups, and differences between the TcB and TSB measurements tended to increase with rising TSB values. JM-103 values differed from TSB values by 3 mg/dL or more in 2% of white, 3.2% of other, and 17.4% of black infants. In these black infants, the JM-103 value was always greater than the TSB value.

Conclusions. We conclude that TcB measurements using the JM-103 jaundice meter correlate very closely with TSB levels over the range of TSB encountered in this study. Because only 3.3% of our infants had TSB values >15 mg/dL (257 µmol/L), more data are needed in this range of TSB concentration. The correlation in black infants is not as close as in other groups, but because the tendency in blacks is for the JM-103 to overestimate serum bilirubin levels, dangerous clinical errors are unlikely to occur. The measurement technique is rapid and simple, and it is easy to perform repeated measurements over time, thus reducing the likelihood of error. TcB measurements with the JM-103 jaundice meter should obviate the need for most serum bilirubin levels in newborn infants ≥35 weeks of gestation, although serum bilirubin measurements are still required when treatment with phototherapy or exchange transfusion is being considered.

Key Words: newborn jaundice • transcutaneous bilirubin measurement • JM-103 jaundice meter

Abbreviations: TSB, total serum bilirubin level • TcB, transcutaneous bilirubin level • CI, confidence interval • CV, coefficient of variation • HPLC, high-pressure liquid chromatography

Received for publication Jun 5, 2003; Accepted Nov 6, 2003.




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Ann Clin BiochemHome page
J. M Kirk
Neonatal jaundice: a critical review of the role and practice of bilirubin analysis
Ann Clin Biochem, September 1, 2008; 45(5): 452 - 462.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J Am Board Fam MedHome page
K. B. Kolman, K. M. Mathieson, and C. Frias
A Comparison of Transcutaneous and Total Serum Bilirubin in Newborn Hispanic Infants at 35 or More Weeks of Gestation
J Am Board Fam Med, May 1, 2007; 20(3): 266 - 271.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Pediatr. Rev.Home page
M. J. Maisels
Neonatal Jaundice
Pediatr. Rev., December 1, 2006; 27(12): 443 - 454.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Arch. Dis. Child. Fetal Neonatal Ed.Home page
H T Ho, T K Ng, K C Tsui, and Y C Lo
Evaluation of a new transcutaneous bilirubinometer in Chinese newborns
Arch. Dis. Child. Fetal Neonatal Ed., November 1, 2006; 91(6): F434 - F438.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 CMAJHome page
M. J. Maisels and T. B. Newman
Surveillance of severe neonatal hyperbilirubinemia: a view from south of the border.
Can. Med. Assoc. J., September 12, 2006; 175(6): 599 - 599.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 NeoReviewsHome page
M. J. Maisels
Historical Perspectives: Transcutaneous Bilirubinometry
NeoReviews, May 1, 2006; 7(5): e217 - e225.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 PediatricsHome page
M. J. Maisels and E. Kring
Transcutaneous Bilirubin Levels in the First 96 Hours in a Normal Newborn Population of >=35 Weeks' Gestation
Pediatrics, April 1, 2006; 117(4): 1169 - 1173.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 PediatricsHome page
K. Grohmann, M. Roser, B. Rolinski, I. Kadow, C. Muller, A. Goerlach-Graw, M. Nauck, and H. Kuster
Bilirubin Measurement for Neonates: Comparison of 9 Frequently Used Methods
Pediatrics, April 1, 2006; 117(4): 1174 - 1183.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Clin. Chem.Home page
D. K. Stevenson, R. J. Wong, and H. J. Vreman
Reduction in Hospital Readmission Rates for Hyperbilirubinemia Is Associated with Use of Transcutaneous Bilirubin Measurements
Clin. Chem., March 1, 2005; 51(3): 481 - 482.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 PediatricsHome page
A. Lavin
Conflict of Interest and Purpose in Bilirubin Screening
Pediatrics, October 1, 2004; 114(4): 1133 - 1133.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 AAP NewsHome page
M. J. Maisels
Use TcB as a screening tool for jaundiced newborns
AAP News, July 1, 2004; 25(1): 9 - 13.
[Full Text] [PDF]