Evaluation of severity, duration and complications of jaundice in infants of both sexes at Ghaem Hospital in Mashhad from 2014 to 2021

The gender of the baby is one of the risk factors for neonatal jaundice, but the difference in the severity of jaundice and its prognosis between the two sexes is not clear. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the severity, duration and prognosis of jaundice in both sexes.

The present study is a cross-sectional study that was performed on 2847 icteric neonates over 35 weeks admitted to Ghaem Hospital in Mashhad from May 2014 to May 2021. This study is done by available sampling. After confirmation of jaundice in infants, data were recorded using a researcher-made checklist including maternal demographic information (maternal age, mode of delivery), complete infant characteristics (age, birth weight, age at onset of jaundice, jaundice recovery age) and laboratory findings (Bilirubin, Indirect Coombs, direct Coombs, G6PD), and neonatal development up to two years of age was performed based on the Denver 2 test. Then data analysis was performed by SPSS software using Chi-square test and Student’s t-test.

1642 infants (57.7%) were boys and 1205 infants (42.3%) were girls. Mean and standard deviation of bilirubin in values less than 20 mg/dl in boys was 17.20±2.48 mg/dl and in girls was 16.54±2.80 mg/dl (P=0.000), birth weight was 3.16±0.49 (kg) for boys and 3.07±0.45 for girls (P=0.000). In two groups of male and female infants, age (P=0.004), direct bilirubin (P=0.001), direct and indirect Coombs (P=0.000), and G6PD enzyme deficiency (P=0.000) had a significant difference. Acute kernicterus was reported in 25 (2.03%) boys and 4 (0.46%) girls (P<0.001). In the two-year follow-up, 23 boys (1.9%) and 11 girls (1.28%) had developmental delay (P<0.05).

The incidence of jaundice in male infants was higher than female infants, which is probably due to a higher prevalence of G6PD deficiency in boys. The severity of jaundice was higher in boys less than 20 mg/dl. Jaundice has a worse prognosis in male infants.