Incidence, aetiology and short term outcomes of extreme hyperbilirubinaemia, in term infants born in the Western health subdistrict of Cape Town, South Africa between 2019 and 2020.

Extreme levels of bilirubin in newborn is a major cause of lifelong neurodevelopmental impairment, which places a financial burden on healthcare resources and caregivers. To determine the incidence, aetiology and short-term outcomes of extreme hyperbilirubinaemia in term infants born in a resource-limited setting. This is a retrospective observational study looking at term neonates with a birth weight ≥2500 g, born in the Western health subdistrict of Cape Town, South Africa, between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2020, who were exposed to a serum bilirubin level of ≥430 μmol/L in the first week of life and received care in the public health system.