Jaundice causes
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Causes of jaundice
Cholestasis
Jaundice is a yellow color in the skin, mucous membranes, or eyes. The yellow color comes from bilirubin, a byproduct of your body processing old red blood cells. Jaundice is often a sign of a disease.
This article talks about the possible causes of jaundice in children and adults. Newborn jaundice occurs in very young infants.
Newborn jaundice
Newborn jaundice occurs when a baby has a high level of bilirubin in the blood. Bilirubin is a yellow substance that the body creates when it replac...
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Jaundice is often a sign of a problem with the liver, gallbladder, or pancreas. Jaundice can occur when too much bilirubin builds up in the body. This may happen when:
- There are too many red blood cells dying or breaking down (hemolysis) and going to the liver.
- The liver is overloaded or damaged.
- The bilirubin from the liver is not able to properly move into the digestive tract.
Conditions that can cause jaundice include:
- Infections of the liver by a virus (hepatitis A, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, hepatitis D, and hepatitis E) or a parasite
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A is inflammation (irritation and swelling) of the liver from the hepatitis A virus.
ImageRead Article Now Book Mark ArticleHepatitis B
Hepatitis B is irritation and swelling (inflammation) of the liver due to infection with the hepatitis B virus (HBV). Other types of viral hepatitis ...
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Hepatitis C is a viral disease that leads to swelling (inflammation) of the liver. Other types of viral hepatitis include:Hepatitis AHepatitis BHepat...
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Hepatitis D is a viral infection caused by the hepatitis D virus (previously called the Delta agent). It causes symptoms only in people who also hav...
ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article - Use of certain drugs (such as an overdose of acetaminophen) or reactions to other medicines or exposure to poisons (for example, poisonous mushrooms)
- Birth defects or disorders present since birth that makes it hard for the body to breakdown bilirubin (such as Gilbert syndrome, Dubin-Johnson syndrome, Rotor syndrome, or Crigler-Najjar syndrome)
Gilbert syndrome
Gilbert syndrome is a common disorder passed down through families. It affects the way bilirubin is processed by the liver, and may cause the skin t...
ImageRead Article Now Book Mark ArticleDubin-Johnson syndrome
Dubin-Johnson syndrome (DJS) is a disorder passed down through families (inherited). In this condition, you may have mild jaundice throughout life....
ImageRead Article Now Book Mark ArticleCrigler-Najjar syndrome
Crigler-Najjar syndrome is a very rare inherited disorder in which bilirubin cannot be broken down. Bilirubin is a substance made by the liver....
ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article - Chronic liver disease such as advanced non-alcoholic steatohepatitis
Chronic liver disease
Cirrhosis is scarring of the liver and poor liver function. It is the last stage of chronic liver disease.
ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article - Gallstones or gallbladder disorders causing blockage of the bile duct
Gallstones
Gallstones are hard deposits that form inside the gallbladder. These may be as small as a grain of sand or as large as a golf ball.
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- Cancer of the pancreas
Cancer of the pancreas
Pancreatic cancer is cancer that starts in the pancreas.
ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article - Bile buildup in the gallbladder because of pressure in the belly area during pregnancy (jaundice of pregnancy)
- Cirrhosis of the liver
Review Date:
8/7/2023
Reviewed By
Michael M. Phillips, MD, Emeritus Professor of Medicine, The George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, DC. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
References
Lidofsky SD. Jaundice. In: Feldman M, Friedman LS, Brandt LJ, eds. Sleisenger and Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease: Pathophysiology/Diagnosis/Management. 11th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 21.
Pitt HA, Nakeeb A. Bile secretion and pathophysiology of biliary tract obstruction. In: Jarnagin WR, Allen PJ, Chapman WC, et al, eds. Blumgart's Surgery of the Liver, Biliary Tract and Pancreas. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2023:chap 8.
Wyatt JI, Haugk B. Liver, biliary system and pancreas. In: Cross SS, ed. Underwood's Pathology. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2019:chap 16.
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