ROLE OF HEMOLYSIS IN NEONATAL JAUNDICE ASSOCIATED WITH GLUCOSE-6-PHOSPHATE-DEHYDROGENASE DEFICIENCY

End-tidal carbon monoxide was measured in 108 newborn infants who had been screened for glucosed-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. The mean +/- SD end-tidal carbon monoxide did not differ significantly between the G6PD-deficient and the normal neonates, 2.1 +/- 0.6 mu l/ L and 2.0 +/- 0.5 mu l/L, respectively, within 12 hours of birth and 1 .9 +/- 1.4 mu l/L and 1.5 +/- 0.7 mu l/L, respectively, at 48 to 72 ho urs after birth. On the basis of these measurements, hemolysis is not a sufficient explanation for jaundice in G6PD-deficient newborn infant s in the transitional period.