Question
My baby, just over a month old, has a yellow face and a bit on the upper body too. This has been going on since birth, and it hasn’t gone away yet. Today was supposed to be the day for the preventive shot, but now that they’re a bit yellow, they can’t get it. A community doctor prescribed 3 days of Mamipai, will this help reduce the jaundice? What is the onset time and cause? Treatment status: What kind of help do I need? How can the jaundice be cured?
Answer
A full-term baby still experiencing jaundice should first undergo a hospital test to measure the jaundice index. Have liver function tests done to understand the liver’s condition, as normally, full-term infants’ jaundice should disappear within two weeks after birth. Another issue is if the baby is breastfed exclusively and is doing well with feeding and weight gain, one should also be cautious about breastmilk jaundice. If breastmilk jaundice is suspected, stopping breastfeeding for 48 to 72 hours can cause the baby’s jaundice to decrease rapidly in the short term.