Question
My baby is now 28 days old! There’s still a bit of yellow on their face. Today, we went to the hospital to have their bilirubin levels checked, and the total value is 127.4, with a direct value of 8.30 and an indirect value of 119.10. Is the bilirubin level too high?
Answer
Physiological jaundice usually appears within 2 to 3 days after birth, reaches its peak between 4 to 6 days, and subsides between 7 to 10 days. Premature infants may have a longer duration, with only slight loss of appetite and no other clinical symptoms. The normal range for neonatal jaundice is based on the serum bilirubin level, with full-term infants not exceeding 204μmol/L (12mg/dl) and premature infants not exceeding 255μmol/L (15mg/dl) being considered normal.