September 30, 2017Health Library
Yellowish staining of the skin and whites of the newborn’s eyes by a pigment of bile (bilirubin).
In newborn babies a degree of jaundice is normal. It typically appears between the 2nd and 5th days of life and clears with time. It is due to the breakdown of red blood cells, which release bilirubin into the blood, and to the immaturity of the newborn’s liver, which cannot effectively metabolize the bilirubin and prepare it for excretion into the urine.