Effect of Bilineaster dro‎p on Neonatal Hyperbilirubinemia

Background: Hyperbilirubinemia is considered one of the most prevalent problems in newborns. Phototherapy, exchange transfusion, and herbal medicine are common therapeutic approaches for preventing any neurologic damage in infants with neonatal jaundice. However, herbal medicine is less commonly used. Aim: This study aimed to investigate the effect of bilineaster drop on neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. Method: This study was a randomized clinical trial conducted on 98 term neonates (aged 2-14 days) with neonatal jaundice admitted to Ghaem Hospital of Mashhad, Iran, during 2015. These newborns were randomly assigned into intervention (phototherapy and bilineaster drop) and control (only phototherapy) groups. Total and direct serum bilirubin levels were measured at the time of admission and then 12, 24, 36, and 48 h after treatment. Data were analyzed using independent t-test and repeated measures ANOVA through Stata software (Version 12). Results: The mean ages of the newborns at the time of admission were 6.2 ±2.5 and 6.04 ±2.4 days in the intervention and control groups, respectively. The intervention group showed higher reduction in mean duration of hospital stay, readmission rate, and bilirubin levels 12 and 24 h after the intervention, compared to the control group (P>0.001). However, the two groups demonstrated no statistically significant difference 36 h and 48 h after the intervention (P=0.06, P=0.22, respectively). Repeated measures ANOVA indicated that the intervention had no significant effect on the reduction trend of bilirubin levels (P=0.10 [total], P=0.06 [indirect]) in both groups. Nonetheless, bilirubin levels significantly diminished in both groups over time (P<0.001). Implications for Practice: The results of this study demonstrated that the use of bilineaster drop along with phototherapy could cause a significant decrease in the levels of total and direct bilirubin; however, the intervention had no effect on the downward trend of bilirubin.