jaundice, neonatal

jaundice, neonatal Jaundice in newborn babies. Neonatal jaundice is usually due to the breakdown of red blood cells, which release bilirubin that the immature liver cannot metabolize and prepare for excretion into the urine. This type of neonatal jaundice typically appears between the second and fifth days of life and clears with time, as the liver matures. Diagnosis is made through observation and measurement of the blood bilirubin level. Treatment usually involves timed exposure of the skin to special lights. Severe jaundice is treated by removing serum from the body and replacing with solutions without bilirubin (exchange transfusion). Also known as newborn jaundice. See also jaundice; kernicterus; spherocytosis, hereditary.