The Icterometer

In the May issue of Pediatrics 29:740,1962), Drs. R. T. Morrison and D. Wilkinson conclude "that the icterometer does not appear to be very reliable as a means of estimating concentrations of bilirubin in serum or as a screening device...." Before this instrument is thrown into the trash can, may I be allowed to comment that "the readings were made in front of a window in a mixture of daylight and artificial light." It is difficult to imagine a city less endowed with natural daylight than Birmingham (U.K.) during the winter months, but perhaps Alberta (Canada) fulfills these conditions.