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Home › Articles › Illnesses, Diseases & Disorders › Neonatal Jaundice

Neonatal Jaundice

Identifying and Treating Jaundice

By Mary Weidler

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Also, an injection of RhoGAM to the mother at 28 weeks of gestation and another within 24 hours of delivery will prevent her from forming antibodies that could endanger any future children. (Approximately two percent of women who receive the shot after delivery will have repeat blood incompatibility problems; women who receive both dosages have a mere seven-tenths of one percent chance of a repeat problem.)

Treatment Options
For babies with jaundice in the "normal range," doctors tend to take the "wait and see" approach to treatment. Continued breastfeeding is also encouraged, since breastmilk is a natural laxative that will cause the baby to stool more often, allowing bilirubin to leave the body.

Usually, the baby's body takes care of the problem on its own. However, if the baby has a high bilirubin level, phototherapy may be suggested. Phototherapy lights pass green, white or blue fluorescent light through the skin, which helps the baby break down the bilirubin. Basically, the lights step in to do the job of the immature liver, so bilirubin can leave the body without being processed there. Often a combination of increased breastfeeding and phototherapy is prescribed, since babies tend to dehydrate quickly "under the lights."

To test for jaundice, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that parents gently press their baby's nose or forehead. If the skin under the finger looks white, the baby is probably not jaundiced. If the skin is not white, a pediatrician should be notified. According to AAP guidelines, this test will work on all babies, regardless of race.

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