Patient's question:
My little girl was born in October a year ago, and it has been 6 days now. In the hospital, she didn't have jaundice for the first two days. On the third day, an expert measured 240. For the past three days, it has been 287. What does a reading of 287 for jaundice mean?Doctor's answer:
This is relatively high. Phototherapy is a simple and effective method to reduce unconjugated bilirubin in the serum. Place the baby in a phototherapy box, cover both eyes with black eye patches to prevent retinal damage, and cover the perineum and anus with diapers, leaving the rest of the body exposed. Use either single-sided or double-sided light exposure, continuously for 2 to 48 hours (usually not exceeding 4 days), and stop treatment once the bilirubin level drops below 7 mg/dL.