Patient's question:
The baby is 45 days old, and the jaundice index is still 80. How long will it take to recover completely? Can vaccinations be given?Doctor's answer:
Hello, neonatal jaundice refers to a group of neonatal diseases characterized by elevated unconjugated bilirubin. The harmful effects of neonatal serum bilirubin levels on individuals are influenced by various factors related to the body's condition and the environment. First, in certain cases, the possibility of bilirubin encephalopathy may occur even when the jaundice level is below the current physiological standard, while healthy full-term infants with jaundice levels exceeding the physiological range do not necessarily cause pathological damage. Second, the development of the blood-brain barrier and bilirubin levels in newborns is a dynamic process. The smaller the gestational age and postnatal age, and the lower the birth weight, the greater the risk of brain damage in newborns when serum bilirubin exceeds a certain limit. Therefore, a fixed threshold cannot be used as an intervention standard for neonatal jaundice.The intervention standard for neonatal jaundice should be multiple dynamic curves that vary with gestational age, postnatal age, and birth weight. The intervention plan for neonatal jaundice should be based on medical history, course of illness, physical examination, and a weighing of benefits and risks. Recommended neonatal jaundice intervention standards suitable for the conditions of our country are shown in Tables 1 and 2, with the following explanations.
1. Before using the recommended scheme, first assess the high-risk factors for the development of bilirubin encephalopathy. Newborns in certain pathological conditions, such as neonatal hemolysis, asphyxia, hypoxia, acidosis (especially hypercapnia), sepsis, high fever, hypothermia, hypoproteinemia, and hypoglycemia, are prone to develop bilirubin encephalopathy. If there are the above high-risk factors, early intervention should be initiated.
2. If jaundice appears within 24 hours, active efforts should be made to identify the cause and provide active phototherapy measures.
3.