Patient's question:
My newborn baby has jaundice, with a level of 18.5. I want to know if this condition is serious?Doctor's answer:
Under normal circumstances, if a newborn's jaundice level exceeds the physiological jaundice standard of 5 mg/dL, treatment is required. The severity depends on the specific situation:1. For normal full-term infants, if the jaundice level reaches 18 mg/dL within the first 3 days of birth, active phototherapy should be initiated, with timely follow-up, and the condition is not severe.
2. If the condition is relatively severe within the first day of birth in premature infants or within the first 3 days in full-term infants, it may lead to bilirubin encephalopathy and cause long-term effects on the child, requiring active treatment.