What to do with neonatal jaundice

What to do with neonatal jaundice is a question that many parents are concerned about. Neonatal jaundice is a relatively common phenomenon, but for some newborns, jaundice does not go away for a long time. In this case, it should be regarded as an abnormal phenomenon, because under normal circumstances, jaundice in newborns will disappear on its own within a period of time. If a newborn has jaundice and it does not go away within a period of time, then he needs to go to the hospital for treatment.

What to do with neonatal jaundice

If a child is suspected of having pathological jaundice, he or she should seek medical attention immediately.

The main cause of neonatal pathological jaundice is increased cell destruction, which is commonly caused by neonatal hemolytic disease or red blood cell glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency due to blood type incompatibility between the mother and the fetus. Neonatal polycythemia, cephalohematoma or bleeding in other parts of the body also increase red blood cell destruction and cause jaundice.

Some bacterial and viral infections can cause jaundice, and the infection can occur in utero or after birth. The incidence of jaundice is higher in sepsis and urinary tract infection. Jaundice is often deeper in patients with asphyxia, hypoxia at birth, or delayed meconium excretion after birth. In children with congenital hypothyroidism (cretinism), resolution of jaundice is often delayed. Breast milk jaundice accounts for about 0.5% to 1% of breastfeeding.

Physiological jaundice generally requires no treatment. Starting to eat early after birth can make the meconium excreted earlier and establish normal intestinal flora, thereby reducing the absorption of bilirubin from the intestine and alleviating jaundice to a certain extent. When newborns have jaundice, avoid using sulfa drugs and aspirin because these drugs are conducive to the occurrence of kernicterus.

Available Chinese and Western medicine regimens

Solution (I)

Liver enzyme inducers: phenobarbital 5-8 mg/kg per day, divided into 3 times orally, nikethamide 80-100 mg/kg per day, divided into 3 times orally (the two are used in combination).

Solution (II)

Adrenal cortical hormones: prednisone 1-2 mg/kg a day, taken orally in 3 divided doses or dexamethasone 0.5-1.0 mg/kg a day, intravenous drip. Use with caution in patients with infection.

Scheme (III)

Serum albumin or plasma therapy: add 1g/kg albumin to 10% glucose injection 10-20ml intravenous drip or plasma 25ml/time, once a day. If the pathological jaundice is of a blood type that does not require blood transfusion, this therapy should be performed 2-4 hours before blood transfusion. Intravenous infusion of albumin cannot be used continuously on a daily basis. During use, please note that the infused albumin increases blood volume, causing excessive heart load and heart failure.

The above content is about the treatment of jaundice in newborns. Parents must pay attention, because the problem of neonatal jaundice is a very serious problem. If it is not treated in time, it will lead to very serious consequences due to the very young age of the child. Therefore, if parents find that their children have jaundice, they must seek timely treatment.