Patient's question:
A friend's child suffers from congenital biliary atresia, and it has cost hundreds of thousands of dollars without any effective treatment. The friend's entire family is already exhausted and truly helpless. Now the child is already 8 and a half months old. What should the friend do?Doctor's answer:
This disease is a congenital developmental abnormality, which can lead to severe jaundice due to bile flow obstruction. When it causes biliary hepatitis, the symptoms are quite pronounced, and the liver cirrhosis is relatively severe. Symptoms may include poor appetite and poor mental state. Liver function tests can be performed for evaluation. If the tests support obstructive jaundice, primarily characterized by elevated direct bilirubin, this type of jaundice should be considered for surgical treatment.