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Neonatal jaundice is a yellowish discoloration of the white part of the eyes and skin in a newborn baby due to high bilirubin levels. [1] Other symptoms may include excess sleepiness or poor feeding. [1] Complications may include seizures, cerebral palsy, or kernicterus. [1] In most of cases there is no specific underlying physiologic disorder. [2]
Neonatal cholestasis refers to elevated levels of conjugated bilirubin identified in newborn infants within the first few months of life. [1] Conjugated hyperbilirubinemia is clinically defined as >20% of total serum bilirubin or conjugated bilirubin concentration greater than 1.0 mg/dL regardless of total serum bilirubin concentration. [2]
Transient neonatal jaundice is one of the most common conditions occurring in newborns (children under 28 days of age) with more than 80 per cent experienceing jaundice during their first week of life. [53] Jaundice in infants, as in adults, is characterized by increased bilirubin levels (infants: total serum bilirubin greater than 5 mg/dL).
Infant undergoing bili light therapy in a United States maternity ward. A bili light [1] [2] is a light therapy tool to treat newborn jaundice (hyperbilirubinemia).High levels of bilirubin can cause brain damage (kernicterus), leading to cerebral palsy, auditory neuropathy, gaze abnormalities and dental enamel hypoplasia.
Newborn infant with Rhesus disease, a type of hemolytic disease of the newborn, suffering from hydrops fetalis (edema caused by heart failure). The infant did not survive. [4] Signs of hemolytic disease of the newborn include a positive direct Coombs test (also called direct agglutination test), elevated cord bilirubin levels, and hemolytic anemia.
Unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia in a newborn can lead to accumulation of bilirubin in certain brain regions (particularly the basal nuclei) with consequent irreversible damage to these areas manifesting as various neurological deficits, seizures, abnormal reflexes and eye movements. This type of neurological injury is known as kernicterus.
In one study, tin mesoporphyrin was administered intramuscularly to a newborn that was only 46 hours old with a low birth weight who had also suffered from severe hyperbilirubinemia. [9] Along with blue light treatment, the newborn showed a steady decrease in its total serum biliverdin within 10 hours after administration. [10]
Symptoms often occur in newborns as they have red blood cells with decreased lifespans and increased blood concentrations causing increased bilirubin production. [2] The most severe symptom of hyperbilirubinemia in newborns is kernicterus or death.