Many newborns experience jaundice during the first few days or weeks of life. If your newborn has yellowing skin on his face spreading to his legs and torso, he likely has jaundice. In some cases, jaundice in infants is easily treated, but in other cases it may indicate a more serious underlying condition. Seek medical attention from your baby's doctor if your newborn displays symptoms of jaundice.
Types
Several different types of jaundice can occur in newborns. Physiologic jaundice occurs when your newborn has increased bilirubin levels during the first few days after birth, while breastfeeding jaundice occurs when your infant is dehydrated because she's not getting enough breast milk, says the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Unlike breastfeeding jaundice, breast milk jaundice occurs due to a substance in your milk that inhibits bilirubin elimination in your baby's body. More rarely, newborns can develop jaundice due to incompatibility with the mother's blood type or from an infection that harms the infant's liver function, notes the University of Michigan Health System.
Risk Factors
Premature infants who are born prior to 35 weeks gestation have an increased risk of jaundice, notes the University of Maryland Medical Center. If you've had other children with jaundice, your baby is also at an increased risk. Other risk factors for jaundice in newborns include poor feeding, cephalhematomas or large scalp bruising during delivery, infections and a difference in blood type from the mother, as well as Native American, Eastern Asian or Mediterranean heritage, says the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
Dangers
In some cases, jaundice in infants can indicate an underlying medical condition like biliary atresia, cystic fibrosis, Guacher's disease, Niemann-Pick disease, neonatal hepatitis, Lucey-Driscol syndrome, hypoxia or Gilbert's syndrome, says the University of Maryland Medical Center. Jaundice can also indicate a wide range of congenital types of conditions, such as herpes, toxoplasmosis, syphilis, rubella and hypothyroidism.
Complications
Elevated bilirubin levels and jaundice can cause certain complications like cerebral palsy in rare cases, warns the University of Maryland Medical Center. If the jaundice is left untreated, your newborn could develop kernicterus, a condition involving brain damage. Kernicterus can cause mental retardation, deafness and behavioral disorders, notes the University of Michigan Health System.
Treatments
If your newborn is otherwise healthy, the jaundice will likely resolve on its own within one or two weeks, particularly if the jaundice appeared within the first two to four days of life, notes the University of Michigan Health System. Your baby's doctor may need to perform a blood or skin test to check the infant's bilirubin levels. Based on the results of this test, the physician may recommend phototherapy, a treatment involving exposure to blue lights that help breakdown bilirubin in the baby's skin, explains the University of Maryland Medical Center. The doctor will also usually recommend that you feed your newborn formula or breast milk frequently to stimulate more bowel movements and flush the bilirubin out of the baby's body. In extreme cases, jaundiced newborns require blood transfusions, says the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
