A Clinical Trial of Fiberoptic Phototherapy vs Conventional Phototherapy

• We conducted a randomized, controlled trial to compare fiberoptic phototherapy with conventional phototherapy in healthy jaundiced newborns with birth weights greater than 2500 g. Twelve patients received fiberoptic phototherapy and 14 patients received conventional phototherapy. There were no significant differences between the groups with respect to birth weight, gestational age, feeding method, presence of hemolytic disease, hematocrit, reticulocyte count, or initial serum bilirubin level. Measured irradiance at 425 to 475 nm for conventional phototherapy was greater than that of fiberoptic phototherapy (9.2±0.9 μW/cm² per nanometer vs 8.2±1.2 μW/cm² per nanometer). Both types of phototherapy lowered the level of serum bilirubin after 18 hours of therapy (fiberoptic group, from 231 ±29 to 210±24 μmol/L; conventional group, from 231±21 to 188±26 μmol/L), but the mean serum bilirubin level was lower after 18 hours of therapy in the conventional phototherapy group (188±26 vs 210±24 μmol/L). There were no side effects in either group of newborns. Both methods of phototherapy decreased the serum bilirubin level, but conventional phototherapy did so more effectively, probably because of its greater irradiance.

(AJDC. 1992;146:235-237)