Aurangabad: Two phototherapy machines donated to Government Medical College

Aurangabad: The Aurangabad Government Medical College and Hospital’s (GMC Aurangabad) neo-natal Intensive Care Unit, has recently been donated two new phototherapy machines. The donation has come forth from three city based pediatricians, to combat the ever increasing load on the hospital, of new born children suffering from Jaundice.

Each of the donated machines costs Rs. 80,000 . The names of the three donors are- Rajendra Khadke, Sham Khandelwal and Kedar Sawaleshwarkar The Government Medical College already owns 10 such machines, however, they do not suffice the 40 bedded neo-natal ICU, with ever growing needs of the times.

"Each infant has to stay under the machine for a period of at least one week at the hospital," said L S Deshmukh, Head of Department at NICU.

"Severe jaundice (when levels of bilirubin are high, usually above 25 mg) that is not treated can cause deafness, cerebral palsy or other forms of brain damage," Deshmukh explained.

It is observed that a newborn baby's still-developing liver in most cases is unable to remove enough bilirubin from the blood resulting in complications.

Phototherapy is the most common treatment for reducing high bilirubin levels that cause jaundice in a newborn. In the standard form of phototherapy, a baby lies in a bassinet or enclosed plastic crib (incubator) and is exposed to a type of fluorescent light that is absorbed by the baby's skin. During this process, the bilirubin in the baby's body is changed into another form that can be more easily excreted in the stool and urine.