New Jersey Administrative Code
Title 8 - HEALTH
Chapter 20 - BIRTH DEFECTS REGISTRY
Subchapter 1 - LIVE BIRTHS
Section 8:20-1.1 - Definitions

The following words and terms when used in this chapter shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

"Bilirubin" means the orange-yellow pigment found in bile, which is formed when hemoglobin, the red-colored pigment of red blood cells that carries oxygen to tissues, breaks down into heme and globin.

"Birth defect" means an abnormality of the body's structure or inherent function which is present at birth, whether such abnormality is manifest at the time of delivery or becomes apparent later in life.

"Child" means an individual from birth through five years of age.

"Clinical laboratory" shall have the meaning given in the New Jersey Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act, 45:9-42.2 6 et seq.

"Commissioner" means the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services.

"Department" means the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services.

"Direct or conjugated bilirubin" means the substance that is produced when heme is converted to bilirubin, which is then carried by albumin in the blood to the liver. In the liver, the bilirubin is chemically attached or conjugated to another molecule before it is released in the bile.

"Exchange transfusion" means a simultaneous withdrawal of the newborn's blood and transfusion with the donor's blood.

"Fractionated bilirubin" means the total and direct bilirubin with the calculation of indirect bilirubin.

"Health care professional" means a physician, dentist, certified nurse midwife or other health care professional licensed pursuant to Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.

"Indirect or unconjugated bilirubin" means the unconjugated, lipid-soluble form of bilirubin that circulates in loose association with the plasma proteins.

"International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification" or "ICD-9-CM" means the document published by the World Health Organization, which promotes the international comparability in the collection, processing, classification, and presentation of mortality statistics, and which is incorporated herein by reference, as amended and supplemented. The ICD-9-CM is available for download at the National Center for Health Statistics' webpage at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/elec_prods/subject/icd96ed.htm.

"Kernicterus" means a condition marked by the deposit of bile pigments in the nuclei of the brain and spinal cord and by degeneration of nerve cells.

"Newborn" means an infant from birth up to and including 30 days of age.

"Total serum bilirubin" means direct bilirubin plus indirect bilirubin.

"Transcutaneous bilirubin measurement" means a procedure that measures the total serum bilirubin in newborns without a blood sample.