Parents who are immersed in the great joy of their baby’s birth suddenly find that the baby’s face and body start to turn yellow and the whole thing looks unhealthy. Mothers can be really worried when they look at their little baby who is covered in yellow. Does jaundice occur in every baby at birth? Why does it happen?
Don’t worry, not every baby has jaundice
Not every child will have jaundice at birth. About 50-60% of full-term newborns will develop physiological jaundice, and about 80% or more of premature babies will develop neonatal jaundice.
Jaundice is due to the incomplete maturation of the physiological development of the baby
Neonatal jaundice is mainly related to the characteristics of neonatal bilirubin metabolism: more bilirubin production, insufficient transport capacity, less developed liver function, less perfect bilirubin excretion capacity, i.e. the uptake, binding and excretion capacity of neonatal bilirubin is weak, in starvation, lack of oxygen, delayed fetal excretion, dehydration and acidosis easily aggravate the jaundice.
There are different types of jaundice, and mothers should pay attention to differentiate treatment
Your baby’s jaundice is not getting better day by day, and your mom is really worried! Is neonatal jaundice the first disease a baby gets after birth? Why does jaundice take so long in some children and disappear in a few days in others?
Jaundice is divided into physiological jaundice and pathological jaundice
Physiological jaundice is not a disease, it is a special state of the newborn period and has no effect on the child’s health. Pathological jaundice is a disease state, and if the bilirubin in the blood is particularly high and kernicterus occurs, it can affect the child’s intellectual development, muscle tone and motor ability. That is, nuclear jaundice can have sequelae. Therefore, pathological jaundice should be treated actively.
Don’t be afraid of physiological jaundice, but don’t ignore pathological jaundice
The recovery time of jaundice is mainly determined by the degree of jaundice, the progress of the disease and the presence or absence of underlying diseases. Most physiological jaundice appears 2-3 days after birth, peaks in 4-5 days, and subsides in 5-7 days, not more than 2 weeks at the latest.
However, pathological jaundice mostly appears 24 hours after birth, with high jaundice values (>12.9mg/dl in term infants and >15mg/dl in preterm infants), long duration, and may recede and reappear, in addition, certain diseases such as neonatal hepatitis, sepsis, neonatal hemolytic disease, biliary atresia and certain genetic metabolic diseases can delay or aggravate the remission of jaundice.
Treatment of jaundice, mothers should not use drugs without permission
Many mothers feel particularly frightened by the idea of giving their newborn baby medicine, and being pushed into a treatment room for blue light by a doctor can be a cause for concern. Is blue light treatment for jaundice safe and reliable? Will there be any side effects from the medication?
Medication for jaundice is effective, but it must be used under the guidance of a doctor
There is always opposition from the elderly to giving medication to newborns for jaundice, fearing that there will be after-effects. In fact, there is generally no effect, medication is generally applied to some liver enzyme inducers to promote the conversion of bilirubin, mostly with some short-term side effects, which can mostly disappear after stopping the medication, also can be combined with Chinese medicine treatment, such as Yin Gardenia Huang oral liquid, the effect of reducing yellow is also good, medication should be used under the guidance of a doctor, do not self-medication.
The impact on the child when he grows up depends mainly on the severity of the jaundice, such as bilirubin encephalopathy can affect the child’s intellectual development, motor coordination and muscle tone.
Blue light treatment is safe and reliable, pay attention to protect the eyes and hydrate more
The treatment of jaundice with 425-475 nm blue light is relatively safe and reliable, and generally lasts from 1 to 4 days. Attention should be paid to the protection of the eyes to avoid retinal damage. Non-significant water loss increases during phototherapy and riboflavin destruction is accelerated, so pay attention to hydration and riboflavin, and some children may develop fever, rash, diarrhea and other side effects. If liver enlargement, increased serum conjugated bilirubin and bronze-colored skin occur during phototherapy, the phototherapy should be stopped and the bronchitis can usually subside on its own.
Breastfeeding jaundiced babies, mothers should avoid eating
During breastfeeding, the baby is closely related to the mother. Some doctors say that jaundice is so bad that they won’t allow breastfeeding, why? Is jaundice related to the mother? What should breastfeeding mothers be aware of? Are there any food taboos? In breastfeeding jaundice, breastfeeding can be resumed when the baby improves after a few days of suspension.
About 1% of neonatal jaundice is breast milk jaundice, which is characterized by non-hemolytic unconjugated bilirubin elevation, the child is generally well and no other pathological factors causing jaundice are found. It is mainly caused by the higher activity of β-glucuronidase in breast milk, which increases the reabsorption of bilirubin in the intestine. It mostly appears 3-8 days after birth, peaks at 1-3 weeks, and subsides at 6-12 weeks. If the jaundice is significantly reduced or subsides 3-5 days after stopping breast milk, it helps to diagnose. If breast milk jaundice is considered, breast milk can be stopped for 48-72 hours and breast milk can be continued after the jaundice has subsided somewhat.