Laser nephelometry of orosomucoid in serum of newborns: reference intervals and relation to bacterial infections.

Orosomucoid was evaluated by laser-nephelometry in 1790 sera collected from 1170 newborns. Within-run precision (CV) was 2.1 to 4.2%, between-run 2.9 to 5.2%. Results correlated well with radial immunodiffusion (r = 0.989). Results can be obtained within 1 h. Orosomucoid concentrations in serum at birth range from 130 to 200 mg/L and are influenced by gestational age during the first two days of postnatal life. Thereafter, the values increase very rapidly in the first week of life, concentrations being the same as in adults by about 10 months. In 66 of 78 cases of severe bacterial infections, orosomucoid concentrations were above normal. Evidently, serum orosomucoid constitutes an useful index in diagnosis and monitoring of bacterial infections in the neonatal period.