There is a general conception among parents that jaundice in newborn baby is the same type as in older child or in adults.
Jaundice in newborn baby is totally different from older child or adults.In newborn baby, jaundice is caused by break down of red blood cells(RBC),whereas in older child and adults,jaundice is caused usually due to inflammation(swellig) of liver.So the jaundice in adults and older children is a sign of hepatitis ,whereas jaundice in newborn is a sign of breakdown of blood.In some circumstances,breakdown of blood is also responsible for jaundice in older child or adults and on the other hand hepatitis is also responsible for jaundice in newborn babies.
Jaundice is the commonest clinical sign in a newborn baby.In newborn babies,jaundice is commonly seen on the skin as increase yellowness of skin after blanching. It appears first on face then progresses downwards .If it appears on the palms and soles,it becomes dangerous and immediate treatment is required..In newborn, slight level of jaundice is normal and does not require any treatment,which is known as physiological jaundice.It disappears automatically in due course of time.But parents should always consult a qualified doctor if a newborn appears yellow..When the level of jaundice is high or prolonged which will be decided by a qualified doctor,it needs treatment and the jaundice is called pathological jaundice.It happens due to various causes ,the most common among them is blood group incompatibility between mother and newborn,mainly Rh incompatibility,when the mother is Rh negative and the baby is Rh positive.
The treatment is phototherapy and in severe cases exchange blood transfusion, in which the whole blood of baby is exchanged with matched blood.