Jaundice - Types, Causes, Symptoms, Treatment And More!

Jaundice:

Jaundice is a medical condition when the amount of bilirubin in the blood increases causing yellow discoloration of skin, whites of the eye and mucous membranes. Bilirubin is produced by natural breakdown of red blood cells and it is also referred to as icterus.

Types of Jaundice

There are three types of jaundice:

1. Hepatocellular jaundice

2. Hemolytic jaundice

3. Obstructive jaundice

Hepatocellular jaundice – This type of jaundice is triggered due to a disease, an injury or damage caused to the liver.

Hemolytic jaundice – This type of jaundice is triggered when an increased amount of bilirubin is produced in the body as a result of breakdown of red blood cells at a very fast pace.

Obstructive jaundice – This type of jaundice occurs when there is an obstruction in the bile duct. This obstruction prevents bilirubin passing through the liver resulting in jaundice.

Symptoms

Common symptoms of jaundice include:

- a yellow tinge to the skin and the whites of the eyes, normally starting at the head and spreading down the body

- pale stools

-  dark urine

- itchiness

Accompanying symptoms of jaundice resulting from low bilirubin levels include:

- fatigue

- abdominal pain

-  weight loss

-  vomiting

-  fever

- pale stools

-  dark urine

Causes

As aforementioned, Jaundice is a medical condition where the skin, the mucous membrane and the eyes turn yellow due to excess amount of bilirubin in blood. The major causes of increase in bilirubin include:

-  Breaking down or dying of red blood cells and protruding through the liver.

-  Overload or damage to the liver.

-  Improper movement of the bilirubin from the liver into the digestive tract.

Here are some major conditions that can cause jaundice:

-  Liver infections including hepatitis A, B, C, D and E or liver infections caused to parasites

-  Overdose of certain drugs (acetaminophen)

-  Exposure to certain poisonous items

-  Birth defects

-  Disorders such as Gilbert syndrome, Dubin-Johnson syndrome, Rotor syndrome, or Crigler-Najjar syndrome

-  Chronic liver diseases

-  Gallstones

-  Gallbladder disorders

-  Blood disorders

-  Pancreatic cancer

- Bile buildup in the gallbladder (jaundice of pregnancy)

Risk factors

As already discussed earlier, Jaundice occurs due to the production of excess amount of bilirubin in the blood. This causes bilirubin to get deposited in the tissues. Here are some medical conditions that increase the risk of jaundice:

- Liver inflammation.

- Bile duct inflammation.

-  Blockage of the bile duct

-  Hemolytic anemia

-  Gilbert's syndrome

- Cholestasis

Listed below are some rare medical conditions that increase the risk of jaundice:

-  Crigler-Najjar syndrome.

-  Dubin-Johnson syndrome.

-  Pseudojaundice

Complications

If not treated properly, Jaundice may lead to severe itching. Sometime, this itching is so intense that patients scratch their skin intensely, suffer from insomnia and even start experiencing suicidal tendencies. Here it is important to understand that these complications are due to some underlying problems and the disease itself.

Jaundice, caused due to obstruction of bile duct, may lead to uncontrolled and unexplained bleeding. The bleeding caused is uncontrolled because of the lack of the vitamin required for clotting of blood.

Diagnosis

Diagnosis of the disease is often done by checking the medical history of the patient, his/her physical examination and a test to confirm the bilirubin level.

In the physical examination, medical professionals usually look for swelling abdomen and inflammation in lever. Here it is important to know that a stiff liver may indicate signs of cirrhosis or cancer in the liver.

In addition to the physical examination, several other types of tests can confirm jaundice. One such test is liver function test. If the liver function test indicates signs of jaundice, doctors may also suggest:

-  Bilirubin tests

-  FBC (full blood count)

-  CBC (complete blood count)

-  Tests for hepatitis A, B, or C

In order to diagnose an obstruction in the liver, doctors may suggest:

-  MRI

-  CT

- Ultrasound Scans

-  ERCP (endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography)

-  X-ray imaging.

Furthermore, doctors may also suggest a liver biopsy to detect the signs of liver inflammation, fatty liver, cirrhosis and cancer. Liver biopsy is done by obtaining a liver tissue by inserting a needle into the liver.

Treatment

The treatment of Jaundice depends upon the underlying cause. Typically, the treatment of the disease is done to cure the cause and not just the symptoms of jaundice. Treatment of jaundice includes:

-  Jaundice caused due to anemia is treated by iron supplements and iron-rich foods in order to increase the iron component in the blood cells.

-  Jaundice caused due to hepatitis is treated using steroid or antiviral medicines.

- Jaundice caused due to obstruction is treated by performing a surgery to remove obstruction.

-  Jaundice caused by overuse of certain medicine is treated using alternative medicines.

Prevention

Typically, jaundice is caused to the malfunction of liver. Therefore, it is important to ensure healthy functioning of the liver by ensuring healthy and balanced diet, regular exercise and refraining from the consumption of alcohol.

Myths

Myth 1: Jaundice is a waterborne disease.

Fact: While it is true that jaundice is usually triggered due to consumption of contaminated water, it is not the only cause. Jaundice is also caused due to malaria, leptospirosis, and hepatitis B/ C. These diseases are not waterborne. Obstruction of bile duct, gall stones or cancer may also lead to jaundice and these disease too are not waterborne.

Myth 2: All liver problems lead to Jaundice.

Fact: Though liver malfunction mostly leads to jaundice, all medical issues related to liver do not trigger jaundice. There are many medical conditions related to liver that do not lead to jaundice.

Myth 3: Itching is the sign that patient is recovering from jaundice.

Fact: Jaundice, caused due to obstruction, usually triggers acute itching. However, itching doesn’t signal that the patient is recovering from the disease. 

Myth 4: Jaundice usually causes extreme sleepiness or insomnia.

Fact: Though extreme fatigue is common jaundice during jaundice, excessive sleepiness or insomnia is not caused by jaundice. On the other hand, excessive sleepiness or insomnia may be a signal of liver malfunction or liver failure. In such a case, one must seek immediate medical attention.

Myth 5: There is no cure for jaundice.

Fact: A large fraction of people believe that there is no cure for jaundice. In fact, this is one of the biggest myths associated with this disease. The reality, however, is akin to this myth. Successful evaluation of the jaundice by liver function test can help one understand the caused and severity of the disease. Once the cause is identified, one can seek medical treatment to treat the root cause of Jaundice.

Myth 6: When diagnosed with jaundice, one needs to stop eating spices and non-vegetarian food.

Fact: While it is important to ensure balanced diet when diagnosed with jaundice, one can eat spicy and non-vegetarian food. However, it is important to ensure avoiding too much spices as it may lead to nausea. A balanced and frequent diet is important to ensure fix the liver malfunctioning and bring it back to a healthy state.

Myth 7: Consuming turmeric can lead to severity of jaundice.

Fact: This is yet another myth around the disease. No medical evidence has been found that proves the consuming turmeric can lead to the increase in the production of bilirubin. Therefore, one can consume turmeric during jaundice; however, it is advised to consume only small quantity of it.

Myth 8: Sugarcane juice is the best treatment option for jaundice.

Fact: A large number of people believe that sugarcane juice is the best treatment for jaundice. However, this is not completely true. Sugarcane juice is a great source of carbohydrate and helps increase nutrients in the body. But it doesn’t really help heal the liver faster or slow down the excessive production of bilirubin in the blood.

Myth 9: It is important to give water to newborn babies to treat jaundice.

Fact: Typically, most newborn babies have jaundice. Some people believe that if the newborn has jaundice, they aren’t really adjusting to their mother’s milk and they should be given water instead. However, this is wrong. Mother’s milk is safest for newborn babies. In addition, giving water to newborn babies may lead to jaundice, if the water is not clean and also lead to several other infections leading to life-threatening complications.

Myth 10: Jaundice spreads by physical contact.

Fact: A fair share of people also believes that jaundice is spread by physical contact. However, this is not true at all. Jaundice doesn’t spread by physical contact.

FAQs

Question 1: What is infant jaundice?

Answer: Infant jaundice is very common amongst babies born before the completion of the pregnancy period. Typically, a large number of babies, born before 38 weeks, the completion of pregnancy period and breastfeeding, show the symptoms of jaundice. But there is nothing to really fear as the signs of jaundice don’t signal that the baby is born with weak or malfunctioning liver. In newborn babies, liver aren’t usually string enough to remove bilirubin produced in the blood. But as the baby grows, the liver becomes stronger and starts functioning normally.

There is not treatment for infant jaundice and the symptoms of the disease automatically subside without the help of any medicines. However, some medical professionals may suggest medicines for infant jaundice depending upon the condition of the newborn baby and the complication of the disease. Complication of infant jaundice may even lead to brain damage.

Question 2: What causes infant jaundice?

Answer: Listed below are some of the many causes for infant jaundice:

When the liver is still underdeveloped. This is very common and one must not worry about the same. Gradually, the liver becomes stronger and starts removing bilirubin from the blood.

-When there is some internal bleeding

-When the newborn suffers from blood infection

-When the newborn baby suffers from deficiency or malfunctioning of enzyme

-When the red blood cells of the newborn baby break down more than normal

-When the newborn baby’s blood is not compatible with mother's blood. This lead to abnormal breakdown of RBCs.

-When the newborn has any viral or bacterial infection

-When the baby isn’t breastfed sufficiently

Question 3: Can jaundice occur without discoloration of the skin?

Answer: Discoloration or yellowish tinge of the skin is just one of the symptoms of jaundice. There have been many cases where jaundice patients have shown delayed discoloration or yellowish tinge. This is why one must know all the signs and symptoms of jaundice. Here is a list of some of the other symptoms of jaundice:

Extreme pain in the abdomen

Discoloration of urine and stool

Excessive vomiting

High fever

Weight loss

Extreme fatigue

Question 4: Is it difficult to treat jaundice?

Answer: the answer is no. The treatment of jaundice is not difficult. In fact, the treatment of jaundice can be easily administered depending upon the causes of the disease.

Listed below are just some of the many treatment options for the disease:

Hemolytic jaundice can be treated using medicines to increase iron in the blood. Also, iron rich diet can help treat hemolytic jaundice.

Jaundice can also be treated using steroids. Jaundice caused due to bile obstructions can be treated with surgeries in order to remove the obstruction.

Question 5: Can jaundice be fatal?

Answer: Typically, jaundice is not a fatal disease. However, those suffering from extreme liver problems may eventually develop chronic jaundice and this could lead to life-threatening scenarios. Age also plays an affective factor in the treatment of the disease. Jaundice may prove to be life-threatening for elderly people and that’s why most doctors recommend hospitalization to elderly people suffering from jaundice. In addition, those who consume excessive amount of alcohol may damage their liver developing chronic jaundice that may prove to be fatal.

Question 6: What is Latent Jaundice?

Answer: Latent jaundice is a medical condition where the amount of bilirubin in the blood increases without any signs or symptoms of jaundice. In this medical condition, the inner skin cells turn to yellowish greenish color excluding the brain cells.

Question 7: What is the recovery period for jaundice?

Answer: Typically, jaundice patients take approximately one to two months to completely recover from the disease. However, weakness, pain and itching associated with jaundice usually disappear by the end of the 3rd week. But it is important to stick to healthy and balanced diet to ensure complete recovery of the liver in its best forms.