Thursday, January 31, 2008 Infant's skin discoloration, is it normal? By Dr. Beth Bagares-Poyogao
HAVE you ever experienced your baby turning "yellow" a few hours after birth? As the mother, is your blood type "O"? And is your husband's blood type either "A" or "B"? If the answer is 'yes' to these questions, then your baby may be experiencing what we call the "ABO incompatibility".
There are three major blood types, A, B, and O. The baby's blood type comes from either the mother or the father. If the mother's blood type is "O" and the baby's blood type is either "A" or "B", the baby's red blood cells are destroyed thus leading to anemia and yellowish discoloration of the baby's skin. In the medical term, this is a form of a Hemolytic Disease of the Newborn or Hyperbilirubinemia secondary to ABO incompatibility.
When this kind of scenario happens, laboratory examinations are needed to confirm the bilirubin levels in the baby's blood. Bilirubin is the yellow pigment formed when red blood cells are destroyed. It is responsible for the 'yellowish' color of your baby's skin. When the bilirubin levels are too high for the baby's age, phototherapy is usually done. It is a special kind of light therapy that breaks down the high bilirubin levels in the blood.
When this happens, the yellow discoloration on your baby's skin would gradually disappear and the bilirubin levels will return to normal. However, if worst comes to worst, if all else fails, there are situations that the baby may need to be transfused with blood of the mother's blood type. Rarely does this kind of scenario happen.
All babies undergo some mild yellowish discoloration of their skin on the 3rd-5th day of life. This is normal. It is called physiologic jaundice of the newborn. This disappears after 7 days of life. That's why we pediatricians usually advised mothers to expose their babies to early morning sunlight. Besides, sunlight is also a good source of vitamin D.
If any of these things seemed confusing to you, you might want to ask further your pediatricians. After all, you have every right to know what's happening to your child.
