icterus neonatorum

icterus

[ik´ter-us] jaundice.icterus neonato´rum jaundice in newborn infants, as seen in erythroblastosis fetalis. Called also neonatal jaundice and jaundice of the newborn.icterus prae´cox mild jaundice developing within the first 24 hours of life (before physiologic jaundice normally occurs), due to ABO blood group incompatibility between mother and infant; it usually clears rapidly and spontaneously, only occasionally resulting in hemolytic disease.

phys·i·o·log·ic jaun·dice

a form of jaundice observed frequently in newborn infants in the first 1-2 weeks of life. It is caused by several factors, including a comparatively high red blood cell mass at birth compared with that of adults, shorter red blood cell lifespan, transiently impaired conjugation of bilirubin in the liver, and lack of gut flora (which are helpful in intestinal metabolism and excretion of bilirubin); is related to indirect (unconjugated) bilirubinemia that peaks at 2-3 days of age in normal, full-term infants and later with higher levels in preterm infants and is accentuated in breast-fed infants. Synonym(s): icterus neonatorum, jaundice of the newborn, neonatal jaundice

neonatal jaundice

Yellowing of a newborn’s skin during the neonatal period, which is caused by an increased bilirubin level in the blood, due to immaturity of liver function plus destruction of red cells. Neonatal jaundice appears between days 2 and 5 and clears by 2 weeks, and is more common in premature infants.

DiffDx
Nonphysiologic, prolonged, or pathologic jaundice in newborn, biliary atresia, ABO and/or Rh incompatibility, galactosaemia, cephalhaematoma, polycythemia, G6PD deficiency, neonatal sepsis, congenital infection (CMV), toxoplasmosis, syphilis, herpes, rubella, late-pregnancy use of sulfa drugs by mother, Crigler-Najjar syndrome, hereditary spherocytosis, cystic fibrosis, breast-milk jaundice, pyruvate kinase deficiency, thalassaemia, Gilbert’s syndrome, congenital hypothyroidism, Lucey-Driscoll syndrome, Gaucher’s disease, Niemann-Pick disease.