How does jaundice affect your baby's health?

In most cases, jaundice is nothing to worry about. However, if your baby's bilirubin levels are too high (because no treatment is taken to control the jaundice and the bilirubin levels remain high), it can cause permanent damage to your baby's nervous system. Rarely, newborns with jaundice develop a condition called kernicterus (also called bilirubin encephalopathy), which can cause deafness, developmental delays, or a type of cerebral palsy.

How to distinguish physiological jaundice from pathological jaundice in children

1. Jaundice appears at different times

Physiological jaundice appears later. Generally, full-term infants will develop jaundice 2 to 3 days after birth, and the condition will peak at 4 to 5 days. Premature infants will develop jaundice 3 to 5 days after birth, and the condition will peak at 5 to 7 days.

Pathological jaundice occurs relatively early, with obvious jaundice appearing when the baby is born or within 24 hours after birth.

2. The scope and severity of jaundice vary

Physiological jaundice is mild and usually disappears gradually within 7 to 10 days after birth, usually not exceeding 2 weeks. Jaundice in premature infants usually disappears a little later, usually taking 3 to 4 weeks to disappear completely. In general, physiological jaundice is limited to the face, neck and trunk, or extends to the proximal limbs; the degree of yellowing of the skin is mild, and obvious jaundice rarely appears on the palms and soles.

Pathological jaundice is more serious. In addition to the yellowing of the skin on the face, trunk, and limbs, the skin on the palms and soles of the feet will also turn yellow. Pathological jaundice progresses very quickly, and the skin may turn a lot yellower within a day. The yellowing of the skin lasts for a long time. It will last for more than 2 weeks or longer for full-term babies, and more than 3 to 4 weeks for premature babies. The yellowing of the skin of children with pathological jaundice will be alleviated and then worsened. It is not like physiological jaundice that gradually alleviates, but it may subside and then reappear.

3. Other accompanying symptoms are different

Physiological jaundice, the urine is slightly yellow, but the diaper is not stained yellow, and the stool is not light in color. Generally, the baby is in good condition and has no obvious discomfort symptoms.

Babies with pathological jaundice may also have obvious signs of poor spirits and appetite, such as unwillingness to feed, poor sucking, lack of energy, screaming, convulsions, vomiting, diarrhea, fever or low body temperature, white stools, enlarged liver and spleen, etc.