Comparison of the Effect of Purgative Manna and Alhagi Pseudoalhagi Usage on Healing Icterus of Infants

Aims: Benign neonatal icterus is a common problem in preterm and term neonates. In some countries, traditional medicine is being used to relieve icterus. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of purgative manna and Alhagi pseudoalhagi usage on healing icterus of infants. Materials and Methods: In this clinical trial, 171 infants with physiologic icterus that was referred to the Imam Sadjad hospital of Yasuj in 2016, were selected by simple random sampling method and randomly divided into three groups. The control group (n=57) only received phototherapy. The second group (n=57) received 5 oral drops for 3 times per day of purgative manna, and for 3 days along with phototherapy. The third group (n=57) received 1cc/kg of a 30% suspension of Alhagi pseudoalhagi oral drop in each 12 hours for 3 days along with phototherapy. Then the rate of reduction in neonatal bilirubin was compared in the three groups. Data were analyzed by SPSS 21 software using Chi-square, one-way ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis tests and Tukey's post hoc test. Findings: The Alhagi pseudoalhagi group had lower total bilirubin mean and direct bilirubin mean in comparison to phototherapy and purgative manna groups, and these differences were statistically significant (p<0.05). Phototherapy and purgative manna had no significant difference (p>0.05). Conclusion: Regarding the effect of Alhagi pseudoalhagi, its standard products could be used in treatment of icterus in infants, but purgative manna has no significant effect on the treatment of icterus and is not recommended for icterus treatment.