Jaundice

If someone develops yellow skin and yellow eyes, he is called to suffer from Jaundice (came from the word jaune meaning yellow). Jaundice is very common in new babies, especially during their first few days after birth. This is called neonatal jaundice.

Even though all parents know jaundice is very common in new borne babies, it is understandably often very frightening to new parents. Here we present some facts which may help to ease your worry.

Causes:

Jaundice is considered a pathologic condition in older children, but this is rarely the case in new born babies. In the majority of the cases, newborn jaundice is a normal process. In the womb, the babies have a lot of red blood cells to get the required amount of oxygen from their mothers. After they are born, they breathe enough oxygen and thus do not need the fetal hemoglobin anymore. The fetal hemoglobin is broken down with help of the liver and the byproduct is bilirubin which is excreted out as stool. A new born may not have such an efficient liver thus leading to the accumulation of bilirubin in the blood and developing jaundice.

Types:

• Normal or physiologic jaundice: It effects almost all babies to some extent. Babies, who do not feed often during the first few days and do not stool often, are more prone to it. Some studies have shown that neonatal jaundice is more common in some ethnic groups such as the native Americans, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Hispanic.
• Pathologic or abnormal jaundice: This is very rare and is the result of medical conditions. In this case jaundice is seen within 24 hours after birth.
• Late-onset or breastmilk jaundice: This shows up in the second weak of life. This is the rarest form of neonatal jaundice. In this case the jaundice may persist for months. The cause is really not known, but is seen to run in some families. There is something in the mother's milk that decreases the liver processing of the bilirubin. In such cases the baby is also fed with formulas on the side of breast feeding.

What you can do:

• Feeding your baby often. This increases the frequency of stooling, reducing bilirubin levels.
• Avoid water supplements which may make them less interested in nursing. Bilirubin is hardly excreted in urine.
• Feed your baby every 2 hours and keep them stay awake by playing with them. If the baby is sleepy at the breast, feed him with expressed milk.
• Expose your baby to indirect sunlight. Place him undressed in a room with lot of day light but never in direct sunlight. His skin is too sensitive to direct sunlight.
• Certain drugs such as aspirin and sulpha drugs may also cause jaundice. Make sure your family doctor known what drugs you are taking so that substitutes can be chosen to prevent problems.

Good News: 

Earlier, just like fever, jaundice was thought to be a problem. Today we know, both fever and jaundice are part of the healing mechanism of the body and can be both a baby's friend. An interesting study was published by John Hopkins University showing that bilirubin can actually protect the baby's cells from damage. Both fever and jaundice are important indicators of the health condition of a baby and neither should be neglected.

Hepatitis:

Pathologic jaundice or Hepatitis especially in adults and older children is much more complicated than before. It is caused by different families of viruses. Today six forms of Hepatitis are known:

• Hepatitis A: It is transmitted by oral route due to consumption of infected food and water. Read more>>
• Hepatitis B: It is a sexually transmitted disease.
• Hepatitis C: Transmitted by blood transfusion and infected needle.
• Hepatitis D: Infection acquired in people already infected with Hepatitis B.
• Hepatitis E: Water borne.
• Chemical Hepatitis: Caused by alcohol, some anesthetics, many drugs.

Compiled by: Indrajit Sinha,

Last updated: 02.12.07 © Medhospital Foundation

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