Effect of Purgative Manna on Neonatal Hyperbilirubinemia: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the effect of purgative manna on the unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia in neonates. Pubmed, Scopus, Chochrane library, Iranmedex and Google scholar were last searched in February 2017. Randomized controlled trials that evaluated the effect of purgative manna on the treatment of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia were included in the review. For meta-analysis, weighted mean difference (WMD) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was used. The outcomes of interests were serum bilirubin levels and length of hospital stay in neonates with jaundice. Seven randomized controlled trials with 812 neonates were eligible to be included in this systematic review. The meta-analysis included six of seven controlled trials. Bilirubin levels were significantly lower at 12 h (WMD: -1.48, 95% CI: -2.31 to -0.65), 24 h (WMD: -2.47, 95% CI: -3.22 to -1.71), 36 h (WMD: -2.83, 95% CI: -4.87 to -0.80), 48 h (WMD: -1.49, 95% CI: -2.36 to -0.63) and 72 h (WMD: -0.68, 95% CI: -1.28 to -0.08) following intervention in purgative manna group. Length of hospital stay was also decreased in purgative manna group (WMD: -0.93, 95% CI: -1.35 to -0.50). Finally, purgative manna administration decreased serum bilirubin level and length of hospital stay in neonates with unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia. More studies are needed to evaluate the efficacy, dosage, and side effects of purgative manna.