Purpose

To analyze the short-term survival of the nursing diagnosis of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia in hospitalized neonates within the first 24 h of life and over a maximum of 7 days.

Methods

A prospective open cohort study with a longitudinal design was developed with 120 newborns during the first 24 h of life. The survival rate after a nursing diagnosis of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia was analyzed for 7 days.

Findings

The number of new cases of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia during the follow-up was 82 (RR: 90.1%, daily incidence rate: 34.17%). The greatest manifestation of the diagnosis occurred in the first three days (n = 97). The median diagnostic survival time was 2 days (95% CI: 2–2). Yellow-orange skin color (RR = 8.08), yellow mucous membranes (RR = 2.05), yellow sclera (RR = 1.99), and female gender (RR = 1.36) had the highest risk ratios.

Conclusions

A rapid impairment of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia in hospitalized neonates was observed. Some clinical indicators were associated with an increased risk for this diagnosis.

Implications for nursing practice

Studies on the prognostic capacity of the clinical indicators of nursing diagnoses like neonatal hyperbilirubinemia strengthen the clinical reasoning of nurses and subsidize diagnostic inferences and accurate clinical decisions.