Correlation between Alkaline Phosphatase and Neonatal Jaundice

Hyperbilirubinemia is one of the most common neonatal disorders and one of the risk factors of neurological complications. So this study was conducted to evaluate the correlation between alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and pathological jaundice.   

A case-control was performed on term neonates with and without pathological jaundice who were referred to the Hazrat-e-Ali Asghar Hospital in 2017. In both groups, cases (neonates with pathological jaundice, n=153) and control (neonates with and without pathological jaundice, n=153) levels of alkaline-phosphatase and serum total bilirubin were evaluated with biochemical tests. Moreover, other data were also recorded from their history and clinical examinations. In addition, the severity of jaundice, duration of hospitalization, type of required treatment, and probable complications after the treatment were considered in follow-up. Data were collected by checklist and entered to SPSS v.20. ALP level and its relationship with serum total bilirubin compared between two groups.    

Mean level of ALP was 411.3 ± 134.2 U/L in the case group and 338 ± 131.4 U/L in the control group. Serum total bilirubin level was 11.9 mg/dl in the case group and 6.2 mg/dl in the control group. ALP levels in the case group were significantly more than the control group (p=0.001). There was no correlation between ALP and serum total bilirubin level in neonates in the case group (p=0.532). There was no statistically significant relationship between alkaline phosphatase level and gender of neonates, but the relationship of ALP level with types of delivery was statistically significant (p=0.002). There was not a significant relationship between ALP level with hospitalization duration (p=0.371).  

The result of this study showed that there is no correlation between ALP levels and pathological jaundice in patients, although this issue needs to be approved by the other studies.