How does TCM dialectically treat jaundice? Five major symptoms of neonatal jaundice

What are the symptoms of neonatal jaundice? How to determine whether it is neonatal jaundice? Let's learn about the symptoms of neonatal jaundice.

Five symptoms of neonatal jaundice

1. In mild cases, physiological jaundice is light yellow and limited to the face and neck, or spreads to the trunk. The sclera may also turn yellow and then disappear after 2 to 3 days, and the skin color returns to normal on the 5th to 6th day. In severe cases, the jaundice may spread to the head first and then the feet, and the vomitus and cerebrospinal fluid may also turn yellow for more than a week. In particular, some premature infants may persist for up to 4 weeks, and their stool is still yellow and there is no bilirubin in the urine.

2. The color of jaundice is light pink in mild cases and darker in severe cases, but the skin is rosy yellow with a hint of red.

3. Jaundice is mostly found on the trunk, sclera and proximal limbs, usually not exceeding the elbows and knees.

4. The general condition of the newborn is good, with no anemia, no hepatosplenomegaly, normal liver function, and no kernicterus.

5. Physiological jaundice is more common in premature infants than in full-term infants, and may appear slightly later by 1 to 2 days. The more severe the jaundice is, the slower it disappears, which may last up to 2 to 4 weeks.

How to treat neonatal jaundice

Can heal itself

Feeding more sugar water can speed up the disappearance of jaundice, and no treatment is needed. However, if the jaundice is severe, phototherapy should be given and further examination should be carried out to prevent mixed pathological jaundice

Damp heat type

Jaundice can be seen in children's skin yellow and bright, its color is like dry, accompanied by fever, irritability, crying, thirst, vomiting, yellow urine, constipation and other symptoms. It is often treated with Chinese medicine such as Artemisia capillaris, Gardenia, Rhubarb, Scutellaria baicalensis, Plantago, Bamboo Shavings, Tangerine Peel, etc. It is accompanied by high fever, irritability, shortness of breath, or convulsions, or coma, and vomiting and diarrhea.

Gastrointestinal symptoms. This type of disease is generally more serious, and most patients have kernicterus. Chinese patent medicines can be taken orally with Angong Niuhuang Pills and Zixuedan, and decoctions can be taken with water buffalo horn, gypsum, fried gardenia, coptis root, scutellaria baicalensis, calamus, rhubarb, and Uncaria rhynchophylla. If the child is already in a coma and Chinese medicine cannot be taken, scutellaria baicalensis, gardenia, rhubarb, and licorice can be used to make a decoction, and enema can be retained once a day, or acupuncture, Western medicine rescue and other methods can be used for comprehensive treatment.

Stasis type jaundice

The face and whole body may turn yellow, which is darker and more dull, and gradually worsens. The patient will become emaciated, eat less, have loose stools, and have skin bleeding with ecchymosis and petechiae. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that this is due to the penetration of heat evil into the body, which damages the spleen and stomach and causes blood stasis. Therefore, the treatment requires promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis, nourishing the liver and strengthening the spleen. Traditional Chinese medicine may include bupleurum, red peony root, white peony root, angelica, peach kernel, safflower, chuanxiong, bergamot, tangerine peel, poria, yam, and Millettia reticulata.

Splenic jaundice

Children's skin turns yellow and is difficult to fade over time. The color is dark and the complexion is dull. They are thin, weak, have poor appetite, have loose and soft stools, and have cold limbs. Treatment can be done by strengthening the spleen and eliminating dampness, and harmonizing the middle. Chinese medicine can use Artemisia capillaris, Atractylodes macrocephala, dried ginger, Codonopsis pilosula, yam, Poria cocos, bergamot, calamus, Curcuma aromatica, charred hawthorn, etc. Chinese patent medicine can use Jianpi pills, Diyin mixture, etc.