title: Hyperbilirubinemia in healthy newborns born to immigrant mothers from southeastern Asia compared to Italian ones.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the characteristics of jaundice and hyperbilirubinemia in the newborn population of both immigrant and Italian mothers.
  
  
  METHODS
  The authors studied a group of 1,680 infants born at "A. Gemelli" hospital during 1 y. All were with appropriate weight for gestational age, weighting more than 2,500 g, born to low-risk pregnancy. Maternal ethnicity, clinically evident jaundice (that is total serum bilirubin (TSB) > 7 mg/dL), hyperbilirubinemia (TSB > 12 mg/dL), the duration of hospital stay and their need of phototherapy were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In infants born to Asian mothers, hyperbilirubinemia was significantly more frequent (48.8 % vs. 26.5 %, p = 0.003) and they reached mean TSB peak significantly later (86.5 ± 38.5 vs. 74.5 ± 20.6 h, P = 0.0001) compared with Italian infants. The average length of hospitalization of infants of Asian and Latin American mothers is significantly longer compared to Italian newborns (4.5 ± 1.9 vs. 3.6 ± 1.1, p <0.0001 and 4.2 ± 1.6 vs. 3.6 ± 1.1, p = 0.0004). With regard to the use of phototherapy, and to its duration, there are no significant differences between the populations studied.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Having studied all infants at low risk, the greater length of hospitalization is due to later peak and the higher frequency of jaundice in newborns of immigrant mother, especially in Asia. Therefore, as it happens to the Italian newborns, it would be desirable to build forecasting nomograms in these populations, to reduce the length of hospitalization and facilitate protected discharge.
authors.affiliation: Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, A. Gemelli Hospital, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, L.go A. Gemelli, 8, 00168 Rome, Italy. zuppaaa@rm.unicatt.it
authors.forename: Antonio Alberto
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Zuppa
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Catenazzi
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Orchi
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cota
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Calabrese
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cavani
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Romagnoli
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001210:Asia, Southeastern / Q000453:epidemiology; D001663:Bilirubin / Q000097:blood*; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D006932:Hyperbilirubinemia / Q000208:ethnology*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D007565:Jaundice / Q000208:ethnology*; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies
chemical_list: D001663:Bilirubin