Aim: to monitor the incidence of cases of kernicterus and severe hyperbilirubinemia in Italy over time, and to describe each single registered event with sufficient information in order to identify one or more possible failures in the management of jaundice.
Methods: the Task Force on hyperbilirubinemia of the Italian Society of Neonatology will draw up national guidelines for management of jaundice in the newborn and a national registry of kernicterus and hyperbilirubinemia for newborns with a gestational age greater than 34.
Results and conclusions: the choice of the inclusion criteria for the registry and the minimum information necessary to describe each single event registered are reported and will be discussed at the national congress of the Italian Society of Neonatology next October 2012.