Increased risk of hemangioma after exposure to neonatal phototherapy in infants with predisposing risk factors

AIM: To determine the relationship between neonatal phototherapy and future risk of clinically significant hemangioma. METHODS: We analyzed a cohort of 678,879 infants born after 34 weeks gestation comprising 3,975,242 person-years of follow-up over 11 years (2006-2016). The exposure was phototherapy the first 28 days of life. The outcome was hemangioma that required in-hospital treatment during follow-up. We estimated hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the association of phototherapy with risk of hemangioma, accounting for preterm birth, low birth weight, and congenital anomalies. RESULTS: The incidence of hemangioma was greater in neonates who received phototherapy than in untreated infants, but there was no association in adjusted models (HR 1.19, 95% CI 0.89-1.58). Risk of hemangioma was elevated in infants who received phototherapy and were born late preterm (HR 2.35, 95% CI 1.51-3.64), with low birth weight (HR 1.91, 95% CI 1.12-3.24), or with anomalies (HR 5.09, 95% CI 3.42-7.58). Without phototherapy, these three risk factors were more weakly associated with hemangioma. CONCLUSION: Neonatal phototherapy in infants with predisposing risk factors may increase the chance of hemangioma, but confirmation in further studies is needed. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.