Hyperbilirubinemia

Bilirubin is a substance that is made when the body breaks down old red blood cells

BILIRUBIN leaves the body through urine and stool. During pregnancy, your body removes bilirubin from
your baby through the placenta. After birth, your baby’s body must get rid of the bilirubin on its own.

- Jaundice is a condition that makes a newborn’s skin and the white part of the eyes look yellow.
It happens because there is too much bilirubin in the baby’s blood (hyperbilirubinemia).

- Jaundice usually is not a problem. But in rare cases, too much bilirubin in the blood can cause
brain damage (kernicterus). This can lead to hearing loss, intellectual disability, and behavior
problems.

- In healthy babies, some jaundice almost always appears by 2 to 4 days of age. It usually gets
better or goes away on its own within a week or two without causing problems.

- Breast-fed newborns can become dehydrated easily if feedings are spaced too far apart. This
lack of enough milk in the body makes it harder for your baby to get rid of wastes such as
bilirubin. Also, some of the things that make up breast milk can change the way the body
removes bilirubin.

SIGNS and SYMPTOMS

Skin and the white part of the baby’s eyes look yellow ( between 1 and 4 days after birth). It shows up
first in the baby’s face and chest.

Brain damage (kernicterus) can develop if a baby with a high bilirubin blood level is not treated. See your
health professional right away if your baby develops signs of a high bilirubin level, which include:

• Sluggishness and poor sucking ability.

• Irritability, jitteriness, and crying.

• Arching of the baby's back.

• A shrill, high-pitched cry.

Signs of a very high level of bilirubin may include:

• Periods of not breathing (apnea) or difficulty breathing (dyspnea).

• Seizures.

HYPERBILIRUBINEMIA TEST

 Bilirubin levels
  Blood type test - if the cause of Hyperbilirubinemia could be that you and your baby have
different blood types (ABO or Rh incompatibility).

Treatment

 Mothers are advised to increase the frequency of feeding so more milk will be produced. Rarely,
it may be necessary to give jaundiced babies a formula supplement to breastfeeding.

 Phototherapy -- special light treatment - During this process, the bilirubin in the baby's body is
changed into another form that can be more easily excreted in the stool and urine.

 In severe cases of jaundice, babies may need an exchange blood transfusion.