New Insight into the Effect of Phototherapy on Serum Magnesium Level

Background: Jaundice is one of the most common findings in the neonatal period. In almost all the cases, neonatal jaundice occurs due to the elevated level of unconjugated bilirubin. Evidence is scarce regarding the association between magnesium and bilirubin levels in neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. The present study aimed to investigate serum magnesium levels before and after phototherapy. Methods: This observational study was conducted on 65 neonates with jaundice, who were admitted to 17 Shahrivar Hospital of Rasht, Iran during September 2011-2012. Neonates with total serum bilirubin level of 20 mg/dL underwent phototherapy with 12 lamps. Magnesium levels were measured before and 24 hours after phototherapy. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 19 using descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and paired t-test at 95% confidence interval, and P-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: In total, 65 neonates, including 37 boys (56.9%) and 28 girls (43.1%), were enrolled in the study. Mean magnesium level was significantly higher before phototherapy (2.07±0.33) compared to after phototherapy (1.81±0.27) (P 0.0001). Conclusion: According to the results, mean magnesium level was significantly higher before phototherapy compared to after phototherapy. However, physiological characteristics of magnesium were not assessed. It seems that the findings of the present study could lay the groundwork for further investigation in this regard.