Neonatal jaundice , a yellowing of the skin caused by elevated levels of bilirubin in the blood that can cause serious medical conditions in newborns, is a leading cause of death and brain damage in infants in low-income countries and medium.
Now, Japanese researchers have developed the first wearable devices to accurately monitor jaundice .
60 to 80% of all newborns
Jaundice occurs in 60 to 80% of all newborns . Real-time monitoring of jaundice is therefore essential for neonatal care. Continuous measurements of bilirubin levels can help improve the quality of bilirubin treatments.
Currently, portable bilirubinometers are used by medical professionals to measure bilirubin levels, but there is no device that can simultaneously measure jaundice and vital signs in real time. According to the researchers:
We have developed the world’s first portable multi-vital device for newborns that can simultaneously measure neonatal jaundice, blood oxygen saturation and pulse rate.
Directed by Hiroki Ota, associate professor of mechanical engineering at the Graduate School of Systems Integration Yokohama National University and Shuichi Ito, professor of the Department of Pediatrics at the Graduate School of Medicine, City University Professor from Yokohama, the team published their results March 3 in Science Advances.