SKi is a service offered by Bilimetrix-USA, LLC in collaboration with Computer Science, Seattle University, and the Stop Kernicterus in Northern Nigeria consortium. The website was developed to provide a holistic approach to the high incidence of kernicterus in Africa, but can be adapted to any culture or country wishing to adopt it.
Multiple causes and barriers lead to hyperbilirubinemia and bilirubin encephalopathy in low resource countries, but four issues dominate.
1) There is a high prevalence of glucose-6-phophate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency, a risk factor for increased bilirubin production.
2) Mothers bring their babies to the hospital because they are sick, not because they have jaundice, and often too late to prevent brain damage.
3) Serum bilirubin determination is unavailable in most rural clinics compromising treatment / referral decisions.
4) Irradiance of phototherapy units in treatment centers is frequently low and ineffective.
1) Coordinating website: This multifunctional website provides educational programs for the public, parents and health providers. It provides guidelines for care, facilitates communications between rural and referral centers. It receives and stores protected smartphone data to support patient care, clinical research and population statistics. It generates reports documenting the incidence of hyperbilirubinemia and disease.
2) Education: The website provides basic information about hyperbilirubinemia in multiple languages and offers links to slide shows and presentations for parents and health providers including antenatal / postnatal maternal associated with a marked decrease in bilirubin encephalopathy (J Pediatr 2020; 221:47 - 54).
3) Point of Care Bilirubin: The website supports software and data acquisition for the BiliPic, a smartphone based assay for plasma bilirubin that estimates the plasma bilirubin concentration from a photograph of yellow plasma separated from a drop of blood.The results are presented to the user in seconds and simultaneously transmitted to a secured cloud platform linked to this website and referral centers.
4) Standards of Care: Provides standards for quality phototherapy and guidelines for patient care.
We would like to thank all of those who have contributed to this site. Eductional materials are based in large part on programs developed by the Stop Kernicterus In Nigeria (SKIN) consortium. SKIN institutions included Massey Street Children's Hospital, Lagos, University of Jos, Jos, Bayero University, Kano, and Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. The website and smartphone Apps were developed by faculty and students at Seatlle University. The website content was edited by Bilimetrix-USA with contributions from faculty at Cairo University and the University of Minnesota and approved by associates recognized above. We are especially grateful for those on whose shoulders we stand including Professors Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, Sam Olowe, Angela Okolo, William Ogala, Joshua Owa, Alvin Zipursky, Lois Johnson and many other unnamed heroes.
Bilimetrix-USA