Evaluation of a Smartphone Based Optical Diagnostic Tool for Neonatal Jaundice
Evaluation of a Smartphone Based Optical Diagnostic Tool for Neonatal Jaundice
Neonatal jaundice is a common and most often harmless condition. However, when unrecognized
 it can be fatal or cause serious brain injury. Three quarters of these deaths are estimated
 to occur in the poorest regions of the world. The treatment of jaundice, phototherapy, is in
 most cases easy, low-cost and harmless. The crucial point in reducing the burden of disease
 is therefore to identify then children at risk. This results in the need for low-cost,
 reliable and easy-to-use diagnostic tools that can identify newborns with jaundice.

 Based on previous research on the bio-optics of jaundiced newborn skin, a prototype of a
 smartphone application has been developed. This prototype will be evaluated in a clinical
 trial in two hospitals in Norway. A smartphone will be used to take picture of the skin of
 the newborn, and by using an algorithm an estimate of the bilirubin concentration is made.
 The results from these estimates will be compared to the bilirubin levels measured in
 standard blood samples, as well as the results from ordinary transcutaneous measurement
 devices.
Inclusion Criteria:

 -  born in St.Olavs hospital, Trondheim or in Akershus hospital, Oslo, Norway

 -  born at term

 -  normal birth weight

 Exclusion Criteria:

 -  in need of advanced medical treatment