Male Speaker 1: A very common concern of the parents when babies are couple of days older and shallow and the pediatrician start to check, I think called a bilirubin, what is that all about?
Male Speaker 2: When the baby is born, one of changes that occur in his body is that he starts to break down some of feed of hemoglobin that is type of – hemoglobin is circulates in his red cells while he is developing as the feeds. The breakdown of this hemoglobin will create a pigment called bilirubin that at very high levels, it’s potentially toxic to the brain. Inside the womb, while the baby is developing, the -- is actually doing the filtering, the cleaning, and the picking up of this waste product that gets excreted into the baby’s lungs or back into the mother circulation.
Once the baby is born, in essence the liver of the baby and he is to pick up and dispose of it. There may be sometimes a delay in the liver’s ability to do that. When that happens, some of this pigment flow accumulates in baby’s circulation giving the baby’s skin color a little yellowish tint. In most instances, it is not a problem. Actually some bilirubin actually protects the baby because it season antioxidant. But at high levels, that may be damaging to the brain, we may have to address this issue and lower the bilirubin level so that if the bilirubin is of a mild or moderate level, there is really no reason to do anything because it rule actually on its own. If that’s present to be a problem, we have ways all addressing into treating.
Male Speaker 1: There is a condition where the mother’s blood, which could be O, and the baby’s blood could be A or B, is that a problem?
Male Speaker 2: Potentially it could be a problem because the mother has natural antibodies against the baby’s red cells. Antibodies may actually attract the baby’s red cell and cause them to breakdown little faster. That’s creating more bilirubin as far as the distraction of the red cell and may cause a problem with rapid rise of bilirubin. These type of situations do require monitoring closely and at times we may have to address the rising bilirubin by using virus treatment and lowering the bilirubin a little faster. That is definitely something pediatrician can very easily determine by doing a bilirubin level, monitoring the rate of rise of the bilirubin and if necessary initiates a therapy to protect the baby.
Male Speaker 1: Also some of the doctor watches the kid’s blood red cell and take that?
Male Speaker 2: Absolutely. Normally babies will get aminic usually between six weeks and three months because of the fact that they breakdown their few of their red cells. Obviously if there’s a process that facilitate or enhances the breakdown, the baby may become some more anemic faster. It may require watching the baby and may be having the baby some iron therapy to the baby. And in a rare, rare situation, the baby may even need a transfusion, but that is on very rare conditions.
Male Speaker 1: But generally, watching your born is only too much.
Male Speaker 2: In most instances, the baby’s natural processes in physiology will correct itself.
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