Effect of Hyperbilirubinemia on the Brainstem Auditory Evoked Response in Newborn Piglets

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: We sought to know the effect of hyperbilirubinemia on brainstem auditory evoked response in newborn piglets. METHODS: To achieve the concentration of bilirubin above 20 mg/dL, we injected a bolus of 50 mg/kg of bilirubin intravenously over 30 minutes, followed by 30-40 mg/kg/ hr of bilirubin continuous intravenous infusion to 10 newborn piglets. Brainstem auditory evoked responses were obtained from these piglets at baseline, 1 hour, 2 hours, 3 hours and 4 hours after the exposure to hyperbilirubinemia. RESULTS: The mean amplitude of wave V was 0.33+/-0.03 microV at baseline, 0.32+/-0.04 microV at 1 hour, 0.33+/-0.05 microV at 2 hours, 0.23+/-0.04 microV at 3 hours and 0.26+/-0.05 microV at 4 hours of experiment and began to decrease after 3 hours of the exposure to hyperbilirubinemia. The latency of wave III was 4.06+/-0.08 ms at baseline, 3.95+/-0.09 ms at 1 hour, 4.05+/-0.10 ms at 2 hours, 4.05+/-0.09 ms at 3 hours, 4.12+/-0.11 ms at 4 hours of experiment and began to increase after 1 hour of the exposure to hyperbilirubinemia. CONCLUSION: Hyperbilirubinemia decreased the amplitude of wave V and increased the latency of wave III of brainstem auditory evoked responses in newborn piglets.