Newborn - yellow eyes jaundice at 3 weeks

[cityangel]

ds1 never had jaundice and was 9 days overdue. ds2 was born at 36+6. He has put on weight and every nappy is wet = pooh. He is feeding well and a bit sleepy as much as I'd expect from a newborn.

He is now 3 weeks old and still has yellow jaundices eyes. I have made a doctors appointment tomorrow to see if I need to do anything to help this to clear.

I have read about breastfeeding jaundice and i think this is what he has. Does anyone have any experiences they can share that may put my mind at rest?

I had been patiently waiting for it to clear but now I'm worried.

Hi Cityangel

I don't normally post but realised I could probably help here and didn't want your post to go unanswered.

My DD1 was overdue and developed quite severe jaundice in her first week. We were kept in hospital for a week on account of it and she underwent light therapy to bring her bilirubin levels down.

The best advice I received from one of the midwives was to keep breastfeeding and to feed feed feed to flush it out. So I fed her every two or three hours for the first month (exhausting) and stuck her in front of the window at every given opportunity. It did eventually go but took about 5 weeks.

I think you're doing the right thing in seeing the GP if you're worried. If he or she is concerned they can refer you for a test on the levels of bilirubin in your DS2 and then light therapy if needed. If he's feeding well and putting on weight though this is a good sign - it's one of the things they looked at with my DD in making a decision on whether to send us back to hospital.

Try not to worry. The wait is awful, I remember, but I think also that it can take longer to clear in babies that are exclusively breastfed.

Hi Cityangel

Maisiedot is right. Keep on feeding him because bilirubin, which causes jaundice is excreted through weeing and pooing. It is also good that you are seeing your GP as he may do bilirubin level test on your DS that can tell if your baby needs phototherapy.

Thanks everyone I am feeding frequently and am hoping the hospital bilirubin levels tomorrow won't mean we need any treatment as I worry about the risks