STUDES ON THE REMOVAL RATE OF SERUM BILIRUBIN BY THE EXCHANGE TRANSFUSION IN THE NEONATAL HYPERBILIRUBINEMIA

Abstract

Fifty one episodes of exchange transfusion were performed on thirty neonates with hyperbilirubinemia. The change of bilirubin and red cell with fetal hemoglobin during exchange transfusion was studied.
Approximately, fifty percent of bilirubin was removed after exchanging total blood volume of neonates, and no significancy of removal rate of serum bilirubin was even exchanging twice of the blood volume of neonates.
Therefore, it seemed to be justified to exchange one and one-half of whole blood volume to remove the serum bilirubin of neonates.
While the about eighty percent of red cell with fetal hemoglobin were exchanged, only fifty percent of serum bilirubin was removed.
Those discrepancy suggest, at least in part, that the possibility of movement of bilirubin from tissue into vascular space and hemolysis during exchange transfusion.
The concentration of serum bilirubin increased and reached to mean level of initial and final level of exchange transfusion at twenty four hours after performance.