What causes jaundice?

Neonatal jaundice is a disease with a very high incidence rate. The occurrence of this disease causes serious harm to the child's health. Friends need to pay attention to the baby's health and pay attention to the causes of this disease. The following will introduce to friends the causes of neonatal jaundice.

Causes of neonatal jaundice

Physiological jaundice, due to the metabolic characteristics of bilirubin in newborns, about 50%-60% of full-term infants and 80% of premature infants will experience physiological jaundice. Full-term infants will experience jaundice 2-3 days after birth, which will subside in 5-7 days, but generally not more than 2 weeks; while premature infants will experience jaundice 3-5 days after birth, which will subside in 7-9 days, and can be extended to 3-4 weeks at most. For physiological jaundice, no special treatment is required. Taking the baby outdoors to bask in the sun more often can effectively help reduce jaundice, but do not let the baby be directly exposed to the strong sun to avoid strong ultraviolet rays damaging the baby's tender skin.

Breast milk jaundice, breast milk jaundice, generally occurs in healthy full-term breastfed babies. The pathogenesis is not yet clear. Breast milk jaundice generally appears 3-4 days after birth and can last for 2-3 weeks or even 2-3 months before disappearing. However, except for jaundice, the baby is normal in other aspects. Babies diagnosed with breast milk jaundice by doctors can stop breastfeeding for a period of time, and the jaundice will gradually subside.

Incompatibility of blood types between mother and baby. Most cases of jaundice in babies caused by incompatibility of blood types between mother and baby appear 2-3 days after birth. The most common is ABO hemolysis, that is, the mother is type O blood and the baby is type A or B blood. In addition to jaundice, the baby may also have anemia and hepatosplenomegaly. Once it is diagnosed as neonatal hemolysis, blue light irradiation treatment must be used as soon as possible and must not be delayed. Otherwise, progressive worsening of jaundice may cause bilirubin encephalopathy. If not treated in time, the baby may die soon. Even if he survives, there will be sequelae of varying degrees.

Drug-induced jaundice, some drugs with oxidizing effects such as sulfonamides can cause pathological jaundice. It has been reported that mothers who have used drugs such as phenergan and diazepam during pregnancy will cause the jaundice of newborns to worsen after birth. Therefore, mothers must be cautious when using drugs during pregnancy. All the use of drugs must be consulted with professional doctors, and they must not take drugs without authorization.

Methods for detecting neonatal jaundice

When the baby is born, the medical staff will check his bilirubin level. If conditions permit, it should be checked again within 3 to 5 days after birth (follow-up test), because the baby's bilirubin level generally reaches the highest at this time. If the doctor suspects neonatal jaundice, the baby will be tested for bilirubin level through the skin (without blood), or a small amount of blood will be taken from the finger or heel for bilirubin level test. Some hospitals do not have these two examination methods, so it is necessary to take venous blood to check bilirubin when the neonatal jaundice is obvious.

If your baby shows signs of neonatal jaundice within 24 hours of birth, the doctor will definitely do this test for your baby. Because jaundice at this time is mostly caused by disease factors and is likely to cause adverse consequences. If you are discharged from the hospital soon after your baby is born, your baby may develop jaundice at home, and you may be the first person to discover the symptoms of neonatal jaundice. Please refer to the following methods to determine whether it is neonatal jaundice: Bring your baby to a room with plenty of natural light or fluorescent lights (fluorescent lights, incandescent lights). If your baby's skin is very white, use your fingers to gently press your baby's forehead, nose or chest, and carefully observe whether the skin where you press your fingers appears yellow when you release your fingers. If your baby's skin color is dark, check whether his white eyes (sclera) are yellow.

After reading the above knowledge, friends have clearly understood the causes of neonatal jaundice. The occurrence of jaundice is very serious for the baby's health, so mothers need to clearly understand the causes of this disease. In life, we must pay attention to some prevention of neonatal jaundice.