Jaundice

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Jaundice is a condition that makes your newborn's skin and the white part of their eyes look yellow. This is because there is too much bilirubin (a substance that is made when the body breaks down old red blood cells) in your baby's blood. One reason for this build up of bilirubin in your baby's blood is that your baby's liver is still developing and is not yet able to remove bilirubin from the blood stream quickly enough.

Jaundice is very common in newborn babies. It is usually most noticeable when your baby is 2 to 4 days old. Most of the time, it goes away on its own without treatment within 1 to 2 weeks. However, your baby will need treatment if their bilirubin level is too high or is rising too quickly. This treatment may involve a special light that makes bilirubin easier for the liver to process (called phototherapy) or in rare cases, a procedure called an exchange transfusion (when bilirubin-rich blood is removed from the baby and replaced with blood that contains normal levels of bilirubin).

If your baby refuses to nurse or bottle feed, is sleepy all the time, has lost a lot of weight (more than 10% of their weight at birth), is extremely jaundiced or has jaundice that seems to be getting worse, you should contact your healthcare provider and they will test your baby to see if they require treatment.

For more information on jaundice, its causes, signs and symptoms, examinations and tests, treatment, and prevention, please visit the resources below.