Comparative outcome of overhead and total body phototherapy for treatment of severe neonatal jaundice in Nigeria.

Background: In Nigeria, neonatal jaundice is commonly treated by overhead phototherapy with neonates lying supine, often with effective exposure of less than one half of the body surface. Total body exposure in phototherapy has been in use for less than 2 years in Nigeria, but is available in only five neonatal centres.Aim: To compare the effectiveness of total body exposure (TBPE) with the conventional partial exposure (COPT) for treatment of hyperbilirubinaemia.Methods: Eleven datasets from 10 neonatal units across Nigeria were retrieved. They included neonates with severe hyperbilirubinaemia treated with TBPE using the Firefly® device (MTTS Asia) as a test group. The remainder of the patients, the controls, were treated with COPT. Any requirement for exchange blood transfusion (EBT) in either group was documented. Total serum bilirubin (TSB) >213.8 µmol/L (12.5 mg/dL) was treated as severe hyperbilirubinaemia. The efficiency of the intervention was determined according to the time taken for a severe case to be downgraded to mild at ≤213.8 µmol/L.Results: A total of 486 patients were studied, 343 controls and 143 cases. Mean (SD) postnatal age was 6 days (0.7) for cases and 5 (0.9) for controls, for gestational age (GA) in completed weeks was 36 (0.5) for cases and 37 (0.7) for controls and for birthweight was 2.7 kg (0.25) for cases and 2.7 (0.22) for controls. Mean (SD) pre-intervention TSB was 299.3 (35.7) µmol/L for cases and 327.3 (13.9) for controls. Severity downgrade day was Day 2 (0.4) for cases and Day 5 (1.1) for controls. Overall relative EBT rate was 6% for cases and 55% for controls (p= 0.0001), and early preterm relative EBT rate was 0% for cases and 68% for controls (p < 0.01).Conclusion: TBPE was quicker and safer for reduction of hyperbilirubinaemia and patients rarely required EBT. TBPE is recommended for rapid reduction of serum bilirubin levels and the reduction of treatment costs, morbidity and mortality in low- and middle-income countries.Abbreviations: EBT, exchange blood transfusion; TBPE, total body exposure technique; COPT, conventional partial exposure; TSB, total serum bilirubin; SB, serum bilirubin; NNJ, neonatal jaundice; SCNU, special care neonatal unit; LMIC, low- and middle-income countries; HIC, high-income countries; LED, light-emitting diode.

Outcome of hyperglycemic emergencies in a tertiary hospital, South East, Nigeria

Background: Hyperglycemic emergency (HE) is typically represented by diabetic ketoacidosis, (DKA) and hyperosmolar hyperglycemic state (HHS). It is a common cause of hospitalization due to diabetes mellitus (DM) and is associated with considerable mortality. In South East Nigeria, there is a paucity of studies on the treatment outcome of HE, hence the need for this study. Objective: The aim and objective of the study were to determine the outcome of treatment of adult persons living with diabetes managed for HE at Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Umuahia. Materials and Methods: This was a prospective study in which 110 consecutive adult patients managed for HE at FMC, Umuahia, were recruited. Data obtained included a total number of medical and diabetic admissions within the study period. For participants that met the inclusion criteria for the study, their bio­data, blood pressures, level of consciousness at presentation or while being treated, random plasma glucose, plasma electrolytes, urea, creatinine, and plasma 3­beta­hydroxybutyrate were noted and/or measured. Similarly, urine sample was collected from each participant for analysis (glucose, protein, and ketone). The outcome measures were patient's survival, hospitalization duration, and death. Analysis of data was done using SPSS 20.0 and the level of statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. Results: Of the 110 participants recruited, there were 46 (41.8%) males and 64 (58.2%) females. HE constituted 15.6% of the total medical admissions within the study period with a mortality of 10%. DKA and mixed form of HE were the predominant patterns in the study. While hospitalization duration was variable, no female participant was discharged against medical advice. Conclusion: The study showed that HE is a frequent acute complication of DM in this region ofNigeria and that HE typically presents as DKA and mixed form. Hospitalization for HE had a variable duration with a significant mortality