Transcript WNBC-TV New York City - Broadcast On 10/16/98
Dr. Max Gomez reporting:
If you've ever had a baby, especially a preemie, there's a reasonable chance your child suffered a problem called newborn jaundice and maybe even spent a little time under some special UV lights to treat the problem. You might also remember the painful blood tests your little tyke had to endure. But now there's a better way.
Meet little Claire Siege. She and her twin brother Benjamin are less than forty-eight hours old, spending a few days in the intensive care unit because they were born about a month prematurely. It's Claire, though, who has a slight problem, one that affects many newborns, especially preemies.
Claire is slightly jaundiced because her liver's not quite ready to process recycled red blood cells. That leads to the build-up of a metabolic by-product called bilirubin, which can cause brain damage.
Dr. Ian Holzman (Mt. Sinai Med Ctr): They get mental retardation, hearing loss, funny movements. Not common, but it is something that we used to see a lot with bilirubins that were very high.
Dr. Gomez: Fortunately, something as simple as ultraviolet light converts bilirubin into a form that can be excreted by the body until the baby's liver is able to do the job itself. But in the meantime, the bilirubin level has to be monitored and that means this, painful heal sticks that draw blood as often as three times a day. Claire doesn't like it and either do Mom and Dad.
(Picture shows baby crying while getting blood drawn from heel)
Amy Siege (Claire's Mother): It's hard because you can tell it's painful for them and we rather they didn't have to do it. But you know it's for the best. They need to know this information.
Dr. Gomez: Now compare the heal stick to this, a handheld device called the TLc-BiliTest that has just been approved by the FDA and can actually measure bilirubin levels within seconds by using a photographic flash. No pain, no blood, and the information can be downloaded into a computer to track the baby's progress.
(Picture shows a sleeping baby being checked with the BiliTest)
Dr. Holzman: So it'll cut out a blood test, we'll be able to screen more babies, and I think the good part will be that we'll have much less risk of a baby ever getting kernicterus.
Scott Siege (Claire's Father): If it gives us the information that we need without having to stick either of them with a needle, then I think that's great.
Dr. Gomez: The BiliTest was tested on more than two thousand babies to demonstrate that it was accurate for newborns of all races and birth weights, both premature and full term, and even in babies whose skin color changed due somewhat to the time spent under the UV lights.
And you can learn more about this and other medical stories on our website. It's located at newschannel4.com. Again, that is newschannel4.com. The BiliTest should be available by the end of the year, so we should be seeing and hearing a lot fewer tears and crying in the newborn nursery.
Dean Shepherd, anchor: You feel so sorry for them. |
